Loss of a Memory
by Jack of Chocolate
Summary: A girl of talent and looks has been placed in Team 7 along with Sasuke and Naruto. She seems to be always doing everything right, but is she all she appears be? [Sakura does not exsist in this fic. Complaints, don't read] POSSIBLE DISCONTINUATION
1. Chapter 1

Summary: I've done this before; meet people, share memories, then forget. Even if I don't want to. (Also, I decided to take Sakura out of this fic, so if you have complaints just don't read it. My OC has taken over the job.)

* * *

A girl about the age of 12 roamed about in the streets of Konoha. She looked completely normal; not a least bit out of the ordinary. The eyes were bright green. Her clothing was typical for it was a black tank top with off-white shorts that came to her mid-thighs. Lastly, she wore the traditional blue sandals.

She stuffed her hands inside the pockets of her shorts as if seeking for warmth inside it (which is strange because it was blazing sunny outside). Her hair was long and ebony; the locks reaching her pelvis. This certain girl's name was Rai. Rai's last name was never known for whatever the reason.

So, the girl was walking down the street, and all of the sudden, she stopped in front of a building (very well known to the village) also known as, the ninja academy. She observed the academy and walked in. 'This should be interesting…' she assumed.

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A/N: By the way, I'm kind of starting the series over with my OC in it if you didn't know. Although I _did_ kind of skip the beginning of the first episode. Whatever. Now back to the story.

* * *

While a certain hyperactive ninja sat in class thinking about everything, but paying attention, Iruka-sensei walked in and stood in front of the class as if he had something to announce. The commotion soon stopped as everyone sat properly and faced the front. Iruka finally started to speak when it seemed he had everyone's attention.

"Today, we have a new student joining today. Please welcome Rai to the academy." When these words were said, a black-haired girl with glowing green eyes walked into the classroom. She stood near Iruka scanning the people presented in front of her. After the short scanning, she bowed and said in a very cute, yet calm way, "It's a pleasure to meet you." She then smiled after the short sentence. A few of the boys' eyes turned into hearts, but it went by unnoticed by the girl.

Naruto, who had been actually paying attention to the new event, was kind of… curious. The girl was very beautiful; I mean who has black hair and green eyes? The blond's heart pounded lightly in his chest a little louder than before, but soon he realized something. Naruto knew that the girl would ignore him and just give all her attention to the heartthrob of Konoha: Uchiha Sasuke. He frowned a bit as he thought about this.

Rai had found a seat that was next to… well, nobody. The boys (who had their eyes turned into hearts) looked disappointed as she sat at the desk nobody occupied. Iruka continued with the lesson, the girl paid attention even knowing the fact that a certain boy was looking at her the whole time. Yes, _knowing_. She didn't seem to mind, though, because every time Iruka asked Naruto to explain something, he would murmur something strange. This, apparently, seemed to amuse her greatly, for she would giggle every time such a thing happened.

Soon, it was the end of class, and everyone was dismissed. They were also reminded that they had the exam to become Genin because it was only weeks away (which was bad news to Naruto because he kept failing the test).

_A few weeks later…_

The weeks had passed, and the new Genin (which was mostly everyone) who had passed the exams stood happily in the sun with other fellow ninja. They were showing-off their new headband that had the Konohagakure symbol on it. Although, majority of the academy students had passed, one hadn't. You see, this little fellow who hadn't passed, goes by the name of Naruto. The poor thing sat on a swing that was under the shades of the tree. Maybe the blond knew that people were talking behind his back, along the lines of "you know he's the only one who didn't pass" or "well of course he didn't pass, with that demon of his he couldn't be normal enough to pass."

As these conversations went on, Naruto just sat lifelessly on the swing, like an outcast. He felt as if he was alone and he'll never have friends for the rest of his life. He contemplated all of this which caused him to get even more depressed. He really thought he was going to pass this time, but they just had to make the exam based on his weakest point! He kind of got frustrated as he kept thinking like that. While he sat there, he didn't notice the figure hovering over him.

Of course, this person was Rai, the new girl that joined the academy and graduated. When Naruto didn't notice her standing in front of him, she was kind of worried. After all, who was the most hyperactive kid in the village? So she decided to do something to "wake" him up. He was looking slightly at a downward angle so she walked to the left side of where he was sitting. Then she swung her right arm around Naruto's shoulder; making him suddenly tense. Rai then bent her back forward so that they were on the same eye level and their cheek almost touched side by side. She then looked to the same direction Naruto was looking at and asked, "Does the ground look prettier when it's under the shade, Naruto-san?"

Naruto nearly fell off the swing and started panicking (not to mention blushing) so he started to stutter. "R-r-rai! I didn't notice you there! D-did you n-need so-something?" Rai straightened up, crossed her arms, her eyebrows already raised, and Naruto let out a nervous laugh. After a few moments of silence, Rai answered his question of _needing something_. "Well, I needed to know why you were sitting here… _sulking_. Just because you didn't pass the exam it doesn't mean you should be depressed."

Naruto kind of stared at her. 'Was she worried about me? Wow, a girl actually caring about what I'm thinking. That's kind of weird.' Was what he thought.

Naruto got up from the swing and admitted reluctantly. "You… you're right. But, what I don't understand is why anybody wouldn't be my friend. I mean, I'm normal… except being the class clown part and all." Rai's green eyes softened and sympathized with the poor boy. There was silence, but it wasn't either comfortable or uncomfortable. It was a neutral silence.

Because of the silence, whispers from the other students who had passed the exam can be heard… well at least by Rai. "Oh my god, that new girl is talking to that Naruto guy!" was the remark from a girl. Although this remark was too low in tone to be heard by an average ear, Rai heard every single one of her words. She gave the girl, who said those very words, a death glare. "Whom I talk to is none of your business." The iciness of the tone struck the girl like lightening. Also the fact that nobody stood up for the blond stabbed her in the head, too.

After the little scenario, Rai turned to Naruto and smiled. "If you want, Naruto-san, I could help you with your training. Plus, Iruka-sensei might let you become a Genin if you prove that you can perform the jutsu without needing to take the whole class again." Naruto didn't quite hear what she said. He was still shocked that somebody else tried to protect him. So she grabbed his shoulders and shook him slightly until came out of his thoughts. "Are you okay, Naruto-san? You look kind of… shocked."

Naruto seemed come to his senses and started to speak. "Well, of course I'm shocked! Nobody ever stands up for me. That's probably because I don't have any friends." Rai blinked for a few times then smiled for god knows how many times that day. To Naruto's surprise, she said the words he thought he wouldn't live to hear.

"I'll be your friend."

Naruto thought he had a heart attack, or that he was dreaming. 'Yeah… I'm just dreaming about this pretty girl who asked me to me my friend… I wish I don't have to wake up from this…' The green-eyed girl raised an eyebrow, and then shook her head. Naruto was a strange kid…

Soon, Rai dragged Naruto's body to where they could train. "Come on, Naruto-san. You can't get lazy if you want to become Genin." While the boy was babbling nonsense in a gibberish language, Rai smirked, but Naruto, naturally, was oblivious of it.

* * *

Later that day, into the evening, and it soon turned dark. Naruto was still training, trying to learn a jutsu from a certain _forbidden _scroll. 'Damn, I still can't get it perfectly. Maybe if I just… no! That's not it…' thought Naruto, 'oh, here comes Iruka-sensei! I'll show him that I can pass that exam without all the boring training.' Iruka had indeed come to the certain place he knew the blond would go to. But this certain teacher wasn't very happy because he saw Naruto and the forbidden scroll with him. That scroll contained jutsu that could wake the Kyuubi!

Iruka finally found his voice and spoke up. "Where did you find that, Naruto?" Naruto had scratches and dirt on his face, a clear sign that he had been training for a long time. The blond smiled weakly from the hard training and said, "You mean this scroll? Mizuki-sensei gave it to me. He said if I could learn a jutsu from this scroll, I could become Genin! That's why I've been training here the whole time!"

Rai was watching the whole scene from a tree. You see, she had come to train by herself because it was an old habit that she couldn't break. This is also the reason why she brought a sword with her. It _was_ a samurai sword, a sworn enemy of a ninja, but it's all she had. But she realized that she was in perfect time for a little show. She covered her chakra completely so the Chuunin didn't sense her. 'So Naruto-san got the scroll? This could get interesting…' was her thought and kept watching.

Mizuki had soon arrived, and told Naruto about the traumatizing information that the Kyuubi was sealed inside him. Iruka desperately tried to stop Mizuki from telling him, but knowing Mizuki, he likes to see people suffer. When the fact sunk into Naruto's brain, he got frightened and ran away. Mizuki followed Naruto while Iruka followed the two. Rai raised an eyebrow. 'Ah, well. I don't have anything better to do.' Then she ran after the trio.

Teacher or not, by the end of the night, Mizuki was surrounded by at least a thousand Narutos. Mizuki, of course, was taken by surprise and didn't know what to do. Iruka was physically hurt, but Naruto's skill of performing a very advanced jutsu made him happy. Rai smiled and stifled a laugh. 'At least Naruto isn't very temperamental…' Then Mizuki got… well, beaten _really, really _badly. 'Oops… I think I spoke, er… thought too soon.' Rai kept watching as Naruto was asked to close his eyes while Iruka placed his own headband onto Naruto's forehead. Soon enough, Naruto opened his eyes. "Congratulation, Uzumaki Naruto, you are officially Genin!" Naruto, out of joy, hugged his teacher. Shortly, the student and the teacher left to celebrate with Ramen.

The day had come, and Rai then jumped down from the tree and her eyes wandered at the beat up Mizuki. "Well, well, well… Look who got beat up by an academy student, who apparently, now Genin. You should be ashamed." Mizuki was hovering between life and death, but he managed to choke out, "H… help me, Rai…" Rai seemed to think about this.

Then she replied, "But, if I help you, Mizuki-san, who'll know what you would tell people. I mean you're one of the few that know my secret. In fact, you're probably the only one that knows my secret." Mizuki seemed horrified. He wanted to live and have revenge on that demon! "Please… Rai, I… I wouldn't tell…" said the dying man, in a voice that was even lower than a whisper.

"I'm very sorry Mizuki-san, but I cannot save you. Good day." So she walked away, leaving a certain person to die.

* * *

A/N: Ah, yes. I'm very sorry I started out very crappy. I'm still learning how to write. So, flame me, if you will. I still would read your "review". And about Rai's little secret, well, you'll find that out later. Whatever, people… please just review. 


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

A/N: Ok, I don't really know what to do for the pairings so please review and tell which pairings to do. Thanks and enjoy this chapter.

* * *

Another day had come, and a certain blond boy had just woken up. He changed quickly and turned to the calendar. A specific date was circled in red. His eyes then traveled to the headband that he had earned. He blinked a few times and let out a small laugh. Soon, he had tied his headband on his spiky haired head, and was out of the apartment. 

Naruto had kept walking to the ninja academy; they were choosing the teams today. Soon, he was going to be a real ninja and then become Hokage! Naruto felt elated at the thought of finally having respect from the whole village. He was always pushed around and ignored, so he had to change something about it.

Now, a girl about Naruto's height and about his age had sat in a tree. She was waiting for Naruto, who was her friend. Sooner or later, the boy she was currently waiting for had walked near the tree. Before he could pass by her, she called out, "Wait for me, Naruto-san!" Which stopped his even pace to the academy. He blinked at the tree. 'Did the tree just say to wait for me? AHH! IT'S A TALKING TREE!' he thought, panicking.

But, the crazy thoughts were immediately lost because of a figure that jumped off the tree. Rai landed lightly on her feet and then smiled. "Good morning! Want to walk to the academy together?" Heat rose to Naruto's cheeks and he nodded (he couldn't find the words to say anything). 'Wow… The days are just getting better and better.'

Before long, they were in their seats next to Uchiha Sasuke. Rai didn't really know Sasuke so she didn't mind sitting next to him. Naruto on the other hand was quite jealous of the boy. While they waited under the pressure of silence (between Naruto, Rai, and Sasuke, not everyone else), a very blonde girl with a long ponytail had walked in. She suddenly looked around the classroom as if she was looking for someone. This little girl's name was Yamanaka Ino.

Apparently, she must have found something she needed (or wanted) because her blue eyes widened. "Sasuke-kun!" was the name she screamed out. Rai blinked and her eyesglanced at the boy to her left. 'Does Uchiha-san have a girlfriend?' Although Rai considered this, Sasuke seemed to be annoyed by the Yamanaka girl. As the blonde looked for a seat next to "Sasuke-kun," she was quite upset that the seat she was looking for was taken. Rai had already stopped looking at Sasuke, and she was now looking blankly to the front of the room.

Her peace, however, was disturbed by the annoying voice of Ino. "Get out of my seat! You can't sit next to Sasuke-kun!" she screamed, while pointing an accusing finger at Rai. The black-haired girl looked slightly to Ino's direction,and back to the front of the classroom. "I believe I was a bit earlier to class than you were. Therefore, I have the right to sit in the seat I wish to sit in. Unfortunately for you, the certain seat I picked was next to Uchiha-san."

That somehow seemed to shut her up, because Ino walked away, fuming. Sasuke felt a little relieved that a crazed fangirl didn't sit next to him. This "new" girl seemed to be a lot more different from the rest of them. She didn't have the preppy personality; she was rather calm. But, not in a cold way, but more of a friendly way. Lastly, she was probably the first girl that called him "Uchiha-san."

He convinced himself that she was just another ordinary girl (or at least, he tried), but he still spared her a glance. The three people sitting at a certain desk thought that there wouldn't be anymore trouble after Rai took care of Ino. Oh, were they wrong. Ino decided she wasn't going to give up on Sasuke, so she came back She also decided that she _was _going to sit next to Sasuke and wasn't going to back off.

"You!" she pointed at Rai, who had an eyebrow raised and was now looking at her direction, "you can't sit next to—" Then she was caught off by other girls from the class. They were staring at Ino with the evil look in her eyes. Then one girl started to protest. "Hey! I was here before you, Ino! I should be the one to take the seat next to Sasuke-kun!" This little sentence caused many other girls to complain. Later, it turned into a loud commotion and everyone was staring.

By now, Rai and Sasuke had hung their head in weariness. Naruto was just jealous that so many girls liked Sasuke. Soon, Naruto couldn't take it anymore. What was so special about this guy, anyway? Why did he get all the attention? Thinking about it just made him more irritated. As the girls just kept fighting about who deserves to sit next to Sasuke, Naruto crouched in front of Sasuke… on the desk.

Rai soon noticed Naruto had moved in front of Sasuke. She was wondering why, and she left her seat (and none of the fangirls noticed). Sasuke and Naruto were only inches away from each other, and they were having a staring contest. Rai had walked behind Naruto and practically jumped on him, clinging onto Naruto. "Naruto-san, do you like Uchiha-san? Aren't you a bit too close to him…" Rai began, but trailed off because Naruto had stiffened and she could feel a lot of eyes staring at her.

Rai, Sasuke, and Naruto didn't realize what had happened until a girl blurted out, "OH MY GOD! NARUTO AND SASUKE-KUN ARE _KISSING!_" When this piece of information had sunk into the three's head, Naruto and Sasuke started to gag, while Rai let go of her grip on Naruto and curled up on the ground, laughing. Naruto soon had a feeling that something worse than kissing Sasuke would happen. Man, was he right. He had soon faced the whole class's furious girls and he managed to choke out, "H-hold on… I-i-it's not my fault!"

But it was too late. Naruto got jumped by a mob of angry fangirls, and had a lot of bruises and bumps on his head shortly after. But strangely, Rai had kept her seat. Soon after the weird event, Iruka had walked in. Finally, it was for the teams to be selected. As Naruto sat expectedly looking at Iruka, little he did know that a girl who goes by the name of Hyuuga Hinata was hoping he would be in her team.

Teams 1-6 were called and soon it was time for Team 7 to be chosen. Naruto's name was called first, so he paid close attention to who his teammates would be. He was kind of hoping for Rai to be in his team and coincidentally, her name was called next. Naruto shouted a "YES!" to the heavens, while Rai smiled to herself. The next name was kind of unexpected (and poor Naruto's spirit was crushed) because it was Uchiha Sasuke.

There was low groaning from the girls because this meant that Sasuke couldn't be in their team. All the girls except Hyuuga Hinata because she wanted to be with Naruto. Soon, all of the other teams were chosen, and one by one the teachers came took the students out of the classroom. At last there were only three people left. Yup, you guessed it. The three people were Rai, Sasuke, and Naruto. Naruto couldn't sit still for another minute.

"GAH! What's taking our sensei so long!" he blurted out, frustrated. Sasuke sat there patiently, while Rai climbed up the wall humming to herself. Nobody noticed her for some reason. Naruto then walked to the chalkboard and took the eraser. He placed the eraser in between the sliding door so that the next person who opens the door gets an eraser dropped on their head. "Ha! And that's what he gets for being late!" Sasuke then groaned inwardly. God, was this kid slow or _what?_ "Naruto, he's a Jounin, he's not going to fall for that," said Sasuke in his this-is-obviously-not-going-to-work tone.

"I think I can hear our sensei coming," said Rai now on the ceiling. Sasuke looked up at the girl. 'How is she doing that?' he thought both curious and puzzled. As Rai had said, their sensei indeed had come, _and_ he fell for the trap. Naruto laughed, while Rai said, "I could do a handstand on the ceiling," and Sasuke thought, 'Is this guy really a Jounin? How did he fall for _that_?'

The sensei had silver hair and eyes that seemed half-lidded. He also wore the Konoha headband which was tilted to one side so that his left eye was covered. Technically, one couldn't see most of his face because he also wore a black mask that covered his nose and mouth. He stared for a second with the eye that seemed to bore into each student.

Suddenly, he spoke up. "Let's see… My first impression is that I don't like you guys," then he looked at the girl on the ceiling doing a handstand, and added, "You're kind of weird." Although this teacher said the girl was weird, he was actually impressed. No Genin had actually learned perfect chakra control until further into training.

* * *

"We will first introduce ourselves, so that we get to know a bit more about each other." said the sensei. Kakashi's right eye curved and turned his whole face a lot more friendlily. "How about your name, things you like, things you dislike, your dreams for the future, and hobbies? You know, stuff like that." Naruto kind of frowned. This teacher looked really mysterious. "Hey! Why don't _you_ go first?" 

"Oh… me? My name is Hatake Kakashi. Things I like… well, I don't really feel like telling you that. Things I dislike… I don't feel like telling you that either. My dreams for the future… never really thought about it. And my hobbies… well, I have lots of hobbies. Now, it's your turn. Starting from the right." Naruto seemed skeptical. All they actually learned about their sensei was his name!

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto. I like ramen… especially the one Iruka-sensei gets me at Ichiraku. What I dislike is when I have to wait for 3 minutes for the instant ramen to cook. My hobby is pulling pranks and comparing different ramen. My dreams for the future… is to become the greatest Hokage! Then, everyone in the village would have to respect me!" Kakashi stared for awhile. 'Well, that's interesting.' He thought. "Next."

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke. There are many things I dislike and… I don't really _like_ anything. What I have isn't a dream, but an ambition. The revival of my clan, and to kill a certain man." Everything seemed dead quiet after Sasuke introduced himself. Rai kept staring at the ground, completely ignoring him, while Naruto looked frightened. 'I hope he didn't mean me…' thought Naruto. "Lastly, you." Then Kakashi looked at Rai.

"My name is Rai. Unfortunately, I don't have a clue to what my last name is. Things I like are magic and transforming. I really dislike squirrels and furry animals… unless it's a cat. My hobbies are climbing up the walls and sulking in a corner. I think the sulking part is actually a habit. My dreams for the future, is to get rid of the fear of furry animals and to climb the biggest wall." And that ended the introduction.

* * *

_The following day…_

Sasuke, Naruto, and Rai had coincidentally walked to the training grounds at the same time. They had come very early because their sensei told them to. They figured he would be there already. But he wasn't. 'Oh well… Maybe he's coming like 5 minutes later or something…' thought Naruto.

Ah, it pains me to see the crushed souls of youth. Their sensei had arrived… 10 minutes later? No. 20 minutes? No… more like 3 hours later. Or was it 7? The trio had no clue. All they knew was that they were standing there like homeless people yawning until there were no tears left. After what it seemed like a millennium, the silver-haired Jounin had finally arrived.

"YOU'RE LATE!" yelled Naruto in his clear, loud voice, while Rai and Sasuke didn't say anything. A few minutes later, Kakashi had explained what they had to do. They just had to get these pretty little silver bells from him and they'll pass to become officially Genin. The funny thing was that there were only two. Lastly, he said whoever doesn't get a bell until noon will skip lunch, and be sent back to the academy.

Soon, he set the little clock to ring at exactly noon. They were all supposed to hide, and they did so. Kakashi was kind of impressed; at least they got the concept of hiding well. Of course, Naruto had wanted to fight his sensei on the spot… one-on-one. Kakashi accepted his challenge and said the fighting style would be taijutsu. But, Naruto became immediately suspicious when the Jounin took something out of a gray pouch.

The Icha Icha Paradise.

This book is famous for its perverted style. Which is why a faint blush could be found on Sasuke and Naruto's cheeks. Strangely, it didn't appear on Rai's. "W-why did you take that out?" asked the blond. To Kakashi, the answer was quite obvious. "Why? To find out what happens of course." Naruto apparently thought his sensei was distracted and tried to attack him. Kakashi, as expected, dodged everything Naruto threw at him.

* * *

A/N: Ok, it's about the same as the series for Naruto, so I'll skip him. I'M SO LAZY! Also, Rai is going to be in the similar situation as Sakura. But with a twist.

* * *

Rai ran swiftly in haste, but calmly. Kakashi had spotted her, and she had to move fast. She didn't care about the branches and twigs scraping her skin occasionally she just needed to get out of her former hiding place. Then out of nowhere, a whirl of leaves surrounded her, and she immediately recognized it. 

_Genjutsu! _

But it was too late. Its power consumed her mind, leaving her slightly dizzy. She blinked for a couple of times, checking for the signs of hallucination. Then, somewhere behind her, a very familiar voice called out. "R-rai…" She indifferently turned around and saw Sasuke battered up and stabbed with many kunai. "Help me… Please…" he called out very weakly. She came before him and narrowed her eyes. Then she stooped down, while Kakashi was watching the scenario in a tree. It looked like Rai was saying to the illusion, "Do you need some help—

Kakashi?" But, the part where she mentioned his name had come behind him. Rai had caught him. A student had CAUGHT him. But, Kakashi ran for the sake of his bells and the reputation of an elite shinobi. Rai smirked and transformed into a black cat (much like an animagus without hand signs), oddly with two tails, then rapidly ran after her teacher.

A few minutes later, she had caught up, except Kakashi was gone somewhere else by then. Another clearing had appeared, and there was a big crater and a few feet away from it, a decapitated head. Then Rai looked more closely. No, wait, it wasn't a decapitated head—it was Sasuke. The girl/cat walked closer to Sasuke turning his unhappy face into a bewildered one. Rai had hoped he would scream, but it didn't happen. So she thought of another plan. She suddenly transformed back to her humanoid form, causing Sasuke an evident shock. "Hey, I think you need some help," she said amusedly. "I could get the shovel."

Sasuke's anger flared up a bit again, being made fun of by a girl. Rai ignored the sign, and started talking in a more serious tone. "You know that if we work together the bells would be easier to get, right?" She looked at the heir expectantly. Sasuke seemed to consider this. If there were three average Genin verses one Jounin, the odds may bejustbarely even. But if they used their minds strategically, this method might JUST work. Rai then said, "We don't have much time, and if we want to be Genin, we have to do this." The girl helped Sasuke out of his demise and began to walk to their sensei, when—

_RRRIIIIIIINNNNG!_

For a second, they didn't know what that meant. Then the next, they were freaking out. "Ha! I guess I have to become a kunoichi in the next village—Suna!" Rai exclaimed painfully. On the other hand, Sasuke's eyes had become downcast and didn't say a word. Both of them had begun to walk to the very place where they had started.

Naruto was strapped to a wooden post, which lifted him slightly above the ground. The other two, Rai and Sasuke, had sat on the either side of him. Their teacher seemed a bit frustrated, and soon started talking. "You should all quit as ninja-- none of you are worthy of such a title. Not because you didn't take the bells from me, because you forgot that the key is teamwork. But it's too late now." Naruto had an outburst of complaints, while Rai had contemplated carefully among the information she had just received. 'Hmm… So we got the smart sensei,' Rai thought, 'Nice.'

Minutes have passed, and then the Jounin suddenly spoke again, in that calm threatening voice. "I've had a change of mind. Generously, I decided to give you another chance. You will eat lunch and try to attain the bells again. But, no one is to feed Naruto. He is under strict punishment for trying to eat lunch before the bell rang." Moments later, he disappeared. Rai and Sasuke had begun to eat, while Naruto watched them hungrily. "Shouldn't we feed Naruto-san, too? I mean, Sensei did say to work as a team…" Rai said aloud for Sasuke to hear. Naruto nodded eagerly as he was about to die of hunger.

Sasuke also nodded calmly and motioned for Rai to feed him. She frowned slightly and said, "You feed him, Uchiha-san." Sasuke wanted the process of feeding Naruto to move smoothly, but someone had to kill it. Naruto looked at Sasuke with disgust, while Sasuke replied, "No. You feed him, Rai." The female of the team had tilted her head to the side, and said, "But, I can't Uchiha-san. I am—" Rai slowly transformed into a cat, "—a cat." Sasuke narrowed his eyes threateningly, while Naruto stared at her in astonishment. Striking green eyes stared back innocently, and to top it all off it said, "Meow."

The cat jumped up on Naruto's post, and said, "Why won't you feed him, Uchiha-san? You know, Naruto _likes_ you." The blond boy's eyes widened into two circles while speechlessly letting his jaw unlock. Sasuke sighed inwardly and gave up. He didn't give up often, but this was another story. The prodigy reached for his chopsticks and grabbed some rice from the lunchbox. It looked as if Naruto was on a verge of tears. But, he was hungry, so he didn't mind much. When it was close enough, he took the bite of the small amount of rice.

At the instant, Kakashi showed up saying that they would be severely punished. The sensei had used several hand signs and the winds started to violently cut into their faces. Soon, the sky turned very dark, like the night, and lightening can be seen, while the thunder shook their conscience. Rai, still a two-tailed cat, had almost been flown away by the brutal wind. "Any last words?" asked Kakashi, almost sadistically. Naruto had begun to speak up. "B-b-but, you said that—" the nervous boy stuttered. "Yes?" Kakashi asked in a dark brooding voice. "You said that we were a team and we were supposed to be one!" Sasuke replied for the poor boy. Naruto glanced at his rival and nodded in agreement. "Yeah, yeah, yeah! What he said!" Rai, at this point she said, "I'm a cat. What do I know?"

Kakashi narrowed his eyes and slowly said, "You…"

"Pass!" On that very moment, the sky had already begun to clear up showing its bright beauty. Everyone stilled in bewilderment, except Rai, who was too busy cleaning herself. Kakashi's facial expression had gone from dead serious to a smile in which involved his visible eye being curved upwards. Rai jumped off of Naruto's post, and landed gently on all four feet. Their sensei soon explained the reason they had passed. The three had realized that teamwork is the most important when living a shinobi life. The other students had failed to see what he was trying to prove. So they fell for every trap that he had put up.

Naruto shouted with happiness, Sasuke smirked with pride, and Rai sat with bright green eyes swishing her tails side-to-side. Soon, Kakashi and his students left the training area.

* * *

A/N: It's a crappy ending. I was thinking about leaving Naruto on the post, but… nah. The next chapter is going to be the starting of a mission to the Country of the Wave. There's going to be angst. You probably know the whole story with Haku and all, but I'll change it a bit. Please review! 


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

A/N: I almost lost inspiration, but I managed. Anyways, short chapter... I'm sorry.

* * *

"Yeah! To the Country of the Wave!" shouted Naruto, happy that he had convinced the Hokage. Tazuna, the person they were supposed to guard while he built the bridge, seemed to pick on Naruto a lot. They were in front of village gates about to leave. All of the sudden, Rai untied her headband and tied it again except this time, it was covering her eyes. Kakashi looked at her a bit strangely. Why would she blindfold herself? "Rai, just to let you know, you can't see like that," said Kakashi his eye curving upward signaling that he was smiling. Rai smiled as well and said, "If one can detect chakra, there is no use for eye sight." Kakashi blinked and understood her intelligence. She was wise way beyond her years, unlike Naruto and Sasuke. 

"I'll even show you a demonstration, Hatake-san," she said eagerly. She walked up to Sasuke and tapped his head. "This is Naruto…" Then she walked up to Naruto and said, "And this is Sasuke!" Kakashi frowned slightly and felt the urge to roll his eyes. Naruto and Sasuke blinked, a few minutes later, Naruto started complaining how he was nothing like Sasuke. The prodigy arrogantly said, "Yeah… You _are_ nothing like me." Naruto frowned, pouted slightly and continued his loud rant. "What does _that_ supposed to mean!" The furious argument went on, Naruto's voice the loudest of course, and Rai turned to Kakashi. "They're such great friends."

* * *

A few hours later…

* * *

'This can't be happening!' thought a certain silent killer, 'This girl… She can't be human!' Rai attacked Zabuza continuously never giving a rest. He had blocked most of the attacks, but he was occasionally receiving bruises and such. She looked as if she was a dead doll being controlled by another person, so terrifying yet hypnotizing. 'She's not like the other, one cannot sense fear in her…' He thought, a bit worried at the moment. A smirk twitched at the corner of her lips, and fire built around her fist. Without warning, she punched Zabuza right in the stomach. The searing, excruciating pain spread throughout his body and for a moment, numbness. But the next was a painful flaming sensation that didn't stop. 

But, he managed to stand up. 'How could she summon elements without hand signs?' Pain was written all over his face, while on the contrast, Rai was smirking in eerie happiness. But the smirk had soon dropped to the haunting emotionless expression. 'No more games. I'm freeing my sensei right now,' Rai mentally talked to Zabuza, putting him into a position of bewilderment and surprise. The voice in his head was low, slightly droning but clear. He couldn't concentrate at all this kid—or whatever she was—kept disturbing him. He felt foolish and weak, not to mention shocked at his new discovery. While all of this was happening, Sasuke and Naruto had watched from afar with pride, admiration, and some jealousy. They were both unable to fend Zabuza off, and the female of the team was doing it for them.

Rai's eyes seem to bleed into a two crimson pools of gore, and bloodlust was terribly clear; even in the mist. She was about to attack, but all of the sudden, a wave of exhaustion washed over her leaving her completely dizzy and out of focus. 'Uh-oh… It had to be now at this moment!' Rai was visibly losing her balance, this making Zabuza a little happier, but it meant dread for the team and the bridge builder. As if she really was being controlled by another person, she just dropped to the ground; fainted. "RAI!" Naruto yelled, out of desperation to wake her. Zabuza smirked and sent one of his water clones to kill Rai but the moment they tried to touch her, it dissolved in the water it was made of.

Up and down in a rollercoaster of emotions, shall I say? Both of the males had worn a nervous expression on their face. 'With Rai gone, I guess we have to free Kakashi-sensei by ourselves,' Sasuke thought.

* * *

"_Brother… When are mother and father going to return to us?" asked a little girl with dark hair and jade eyes. The two siblings were sitting in a field with grass so tranquil creating an illusion of green. The field of the grass swayed back and forth slowly with gentling breeze. Their dark locks stood out in the swirling hypnotism of emerald-like meadow; swaying softly with the light wind, creating simple beauty. The older sibling didn't answer her question either because of the lack of knowledge or the pain its answer would bring. She then saw somewhere upon the spacious sky, a face of her mother and father. They both motioned for her to come, either with them or closer. _

_Despite the fact that her brother didn't follow her, she ran after the faces painted upon the sky. No matter how much she ran across the endless meadow, the faces didn't get any closer. She had then fallen, causing her to be sprawled across the floor. A scraped knee she had, but she still reached out for her dearly loved. The two faces soon faded away before her eyes causing sorrow and panic to build up, which made her insides feel contorted. She looked behind the miles she had run hoping to see a smudge of her brother in the distance. But, he had too, vanished. Soon it forced tears to her eyes sobbing painfully as she ran in desperation to reach him. She tripped again and again, and realized the peaceful meadow had turned into something else. Her brother was nowhere to be seen, and using the frustration, beat the ground with her fists. She had continuously punched into the dirt and it soon cracked the skin causing her knuckles to bleed. Then its joints disconnected with a sickening crack causing her mouth to open and scream, but nothing came out. Her voice couldn't be heard, no one was there to hear her. _

_She began punching into the ground again, turning her hands bloody and useless. Even with her mangled hand she tried to scream again, holding her neck for the voice she longed for. "Ah…" she managed out loud. Soon she realized the pain her hands had brought and she—_

A scream crashed through the silence. Everyone stared worriedly at Rai hoping she was alright. She sat up straight on her futon with cold sweat dripping down her forehead. . Her vision wasn't quite clear, but simply vague. Tsunami was taking care of Kakashi who had fainted also. When her sight's dullness was lifted slightly, she could see a blond looking at her. "Hello, Naruto," she began hoarsely. Nobody spoke for a moment, and then Naruto asked in a softer tone of voice instead of the loudness that caught many of the people's attention. "What did he do to you? You were fighting so well, and then you just-just…" he trailed off out of shock the event had brought.

Rai smiled weakly and started explaining. "I'm a little different from a lot of people as you have seen. For some reason, I really don't have to go to sleep for four months." She paused for a moment to make sure everyone knew what she was talking about. Different signs of puzzlement could be seen from them. Then she continued, "Although this could be good for my safety and such, I just drop into sleep when those four months are up. At the moment when I was fighting Zabuza, my four months were up. It's just coincidence I suppose." Most of them seemed to have a hard time taking in the information even if Sasuke didn't show much expression. It was silent once more until Naruto broke it. "What about the barrier when Zabuza's water clone tried to kill you?"

Rai blinked and tilted her head to the side. Her eyes then narrowed, and finally answered in an uncertain way. "I really don't know what happens after I've become unconscious. I apologize for not answering your question." After the discovery and short conversation, Kakashi had woken up. Seeming to have regained her strength, Rai walked over to where her sensei sat up. Following her, Sasuke and Naruto also walked over. He seemed to be feeling better, and started explaining the purpose of the mysterious boy with the mask. It was finally concluded that Zabuza was still alive. After a moment or two, their sensei declared an unexpected training. Rai blinked with curiosity, Naruto looked a bit doubtful, while Sasuke didn't quite express anything.

They were led outside in a forest. Kakashi had crutches for support, and explained what they were to do. Focusing chakra to the bottom of the feet was easier said than done, of course. Kakashi already knew who would succeed in this part of the training. "Rai, would you like to demonstrate for us?" The girl examined the tree, and without another word, walked up the tree with ease. Sasuke and Naruto again stared like the time when she had bravely fought Zabuza. Then with a small frown she asked, "This is what we came to do?" Kakashi blinked then nodded. Soon, he gave a signal to make the training begin. The two males focused chakra and ran toward the chosen tree. Naruto was about to fall off immediately, until Rai tapped into his mind and spoke.

'Add a little more chakra to that, Naruto-san.' Without knowing who was talking to him, he forced more chakra into the bottom of his feet. He ran up the tree a little more before jumping off. Sasuke lasted a bit longer on the tree, but he was also given a warning. 'Not too much chakra, Uchiha-san.' Sasuke lessened the pressure of chakra on the bottom of his feet, and he managed to climb a few more feet before he, too, jumped off. Both of them turned their heads toward where she was supposed to be. But she wasn't there. Instead, Kakashi replied. "Rai has already mastered perfect chakra control, therefore allowing her to protect Tazuna." The two glanced at each other and hung their heads.

_Meanwhile…_

"Wow… This is how everyone lives?" Rai asked in a worried way. So many people were living in the streets holding up signs for food, and even children were wearing patched up clothes. Tazuna nodded in silent grim. 'So this is what Gatou did,' she perceived, 'he seems like one of those short mafia leaders… Of course, what would I know of his height?' The streets of mist were somewhat crowded with people, mostly poor, and the markets were completely or almost empty. Suddenly, Rai stopped walking. Tazuna kept on going, until he noticed she had frozen in her tracks. "Tazuna-san, have you ever been invisible?" she asked, rather randomly. The old bridge builder narrowed his eyes in suspicion and tilted his head to the side.

They moved to a more vacant spot so that no one would see. "So, if you're in danger, I'll come very quickly. Also, if you think you're in danger, I'll still come just as quickly. Any questions?" she explained hastily while working up a very advanced spell. 'How long would this barrier hold?' she asked herself and somehow, it seemed to growl back an answer. _Perhaps about 30 or 40 minutes in my calculation… _Rai nodded, and she cast the spell. Tazuna seemed to have disappeared, and she was pleased with the outcome. "I'll be back, Tazuna-san." And with that, she had too, vanished.

* * *

Dinner was typical, with a little bit of lover's quarrel, and a dash of yelling. Naruto looked away with a pout while Sasuke had a very faint smirk that nobody noticed except Rai. The girl giggled with amusement causing a lot of stares and suspicious expressions. The two boys were so exhausted from the training, but they didn't want to show it. They had both learned to go all the way, but it still seemed as if Naruto wanted to beat Sasuke. "Come now, Rai. Eat something." Kakashi told her softly. Rai stared at the food as if trying not to be rude. Then she looked up at her sensei. "I apologize, but I don't eat." For a moment, everyone thought it was normal, but realized it wasn't at all. Then the silence took over, poor Rai being a suspect for… well, not eating food. She cleared her throat and tried to explain. "I mean, I don't eat this kind of food." She vaguely directed at the meal before her.

Inari was a boy Rai noticed crying a lot. He had made comments of team 7 not being a hero; of course Rai didn't quite care. Her sensitive nose detected the scent of salty tears hanging heavily whenever she passed his room, and found him often sitting in front of the window, weeping. After dinner, Naruto was so stubborn to go and "beat Sasuke" so he left again to train for perfect chakra control. Everyone went to bed except Rai and Inari, neither of them were sleepy for different reasons. In an attempt to make the depressed boy to stop the weeping, she looked for him. Almost like always, she found him again shedding tears in front of the window.

She walked over to him and she pat his head making him jump slightly. His eyes were red and puffy obviously from crying. The tears were still there, and Rai reached out to wipe them off. He always sat on something because his height couldn't reach the window. He now gently descended from the box, and faced the familiar girl. Rai smiled sympathetically and bent down slightly to level with his height. She ruffled his hair and spoke in a soft voice. "If you keep crying like that, you'll be soon swimming in your own pool of tears." Inari blinked; still a bit watery, and wiped it away with his own hands. The moon lit up the darkness surrounding them, creating a strange bluish illumination. "You should go to sleep," she recommended, and vaguely directed to his bed. "I'll stay until you slumber. I shall leave, okay?"

Inari didn't understand why she was helping him, but he nodded anyway. He climbed in the bed and pulled the blanket to his neck. She sat on the edge of the bed trying not to discomfort him. And somehow, he heard faintsoothing sounds in his head echoing, but not throughout the room. He saw images of differentscenes of nature and noticed its diverse beauty. The illusion of both sound and images combined into one, causing pure comfortabledrowsiness. He didn't even think about refusing the comfort of the sleep he was slipping to.

He didn't even notice the green bleeding into red.

* * *

A/N: Sudden, terrifying inspiration. If you know about... nevermind. Please review. 


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

A/N: Sasuke may be a little OOC (out of character) and I apologize. There's a twist to this whole thing, and please don't kill me. KATHRYN. Cough.

* * *

Sasuke had woken up quite early, as usual. He was getting ready for everything that was to happen today. Well, he really didn't know what would happen, but a shinobi couldn't be more prepared for an assault, right? His thoughts wandered off to Naruto, his annoying teammate who didn't seem to back off and Sasuke probably had to bring him back later this morning. Then, there was Rai. She was a strange girl really. She had that weird aura that didn't stop bugging him. He was, although hard to admit, jealous of her sometimes. The thought of a mere girl beating him in such an area as perfect chakra control was almost unnerving. But, somehow, it seemed alright with Rai. On the bright side, he was glad overall that he wasn't in the same team with a crazed fangirl. That would've been horrible.

He glanced at a nearby clock. 3:42 AM, it read. He knew no one would be awake except Rai. He sighed inwardly for doing this, but he had to bug someone. Sure, he was the great heartthrob, but he really didn't like the silence. Gasp. I know. After the death of his clan, the silence was terrifying and unsettling. He walked out of his room, and looked for Rai. She was very close, and just around a corner. He knocked, but no one answered. He knocked again, and only silence followed. Figuring it was okay to walk in, he did so. What he saw was the trauma of his life.

In her room, was dangling things he couldn't possibly ever imagine. There were sharply carved bones suspended from the ceiling with thick strings, and there were considerably small human skulls in a jar. Masks could be seen everywhere, each more disturbing than the one before. There were also small dolls ragged and old, the vital points of the human body patched to differentiate. Candles were everywhere, and to Sasuke, it seemed out of place. On the floor, candles could be seen around an elaborate pattern seemingly drawn with a white chalk. Necklaces made of tusks, and others with crosses on them could be seen all over the room, too. In general, the whole place was just plain sinister. He was about to go back to his room, but bumped into a person.

Rai stood with her eyebrow raised in suspicion. Sasuke didn't know what to do, but to just stand there. He had to say something, but oddly, he couldn't choke out any words. Then, Rai asked a very simple question. "What are you doing?" Her voice seemed a bit irritated, but rather calm. Deciding not to say anything, he began to walk away. She took out a small bottle and uncapped it. _"Kieuseru," _she whispered with a vague hand motion, and all of the menacing material was sucked inside the tiny bottle. She closed the bottle and threw it near the rest of her belongings. Then out of nowhere, she smirked. Sasuke indifferently looked at her although a bit confused on the inside. "You weren't scared were you?" she mocked slightly, "You big scaredy cat." Sasuke frowned and was about tosettle with violence, but thought otherwise. He knew Rai wasn't the one to pick a fight with. He knew better.

Rai looked at Sasuke straight in the eye and squinted slightly. "Uchiha-san, your Sharingan is to be shown very soon. Either today or tomorrow. Most likely today." She walked out of the house, and vanished. Sasuke pretended that all of those things didn't happen, so he walked back to his room.

The girl faced the outside with no expression, calmly staring into space. Although on the surface she seemed so, but she actually was holding a conversation. Her "other side" was a little twisted, so they usually didn't agree. So this is how their conversation went. (This is Rai, and _this is her "other side.")_

I'm still confused why we're doing this.

_You should understand. It's to test their abilities._

Yeah, but why are we testing them?

_What's the point of staying on the team if the teammates are weak? You'll see my point someday, Rai-kun._

I hope so… You really think it's a good idea?

_It depends on how you look at it. I'll take over so that you don't take the blame._

Woah… What's up with you? Suddenly being nice and all.

_Shut up._

And that ended their conversation. Rai blinked out of her trance and walked to the forest. Her pace was perfectly equal to the step before and kept her head forward. The woods were silent, until rustling passed her ears. She didn't stop, and just kept her pace. But it wasn't long until two mist nin jumped in front of her. Usually, she would've just kept walking; completely ignoring them. But, these two were different. Their names just happened to be Haku and Zabuza. "Hello, my dear friends."

-----

Soon, everyone gathered at the bridge, including Naruto who provedto everyonethat he hasendless amount of energy inside him even after the intense training he put through. Tazuna was at work again, building the bridge like the bridge builder he is. Kakashi sat somewhere reading his very appropriate book while keeping an eye on the client. Ahem. Sasuke just stood looking pretty and calm, as usual. Naruto was trying to sit still, but failing horribly. Rai walked along the dangerously threatening edge of the bridge, not even flinching at the height. Everyone had brought their weapons, except for Rai who covered it up with the word, "oops."

_Ah, so the game should begin sometime soon… Please let me out. _Rai just shook her head and stood in her place calmly. Mist gathered up, and this time, everyone was aware what this sign meant. Zabuza and Haku soon appeared for everyone to see, but something was different about them. The way Zabuza had dressed was different, and another thing was, that he blindfolded himself with bandages. Haku had his mask on like before, but somehow, he seemed different also. Lastly, no words were exchanged between the two enemies. Just silence lingered waking the awkwardness.

The three Genin made a small triangle and Kakashi offered Rai to fight Haku. Rai replied with a, "no" and suggested Sasuke would be better for this fight. So Sasuke was chosen to fight him, along with Naruto. Rai was then stuck guarding the bridge builder. Kakashi warned the girl to watch out for Zabuza's water clones, and she walked away without an answer. She stood there without any weapons and possibly being the helpless little girl she—NOT. Are you crazy! Ahem. Tazuna seemed a bit worried that this girl wouldn't be able to protect him, but Rai assured him otherwise. "Don't worry, Tazuna-san. Momochi-san won't attack us, and that, I will promise." She smiled at him with such confidence that he almost believed her.

Haku was wicked fast, and both of the males had a hard time blocking all of his attacks. The long haired boy appeared weak, his arms dangling at his side almost looking useless. But whenever Naruto or Sasuke tried to attack, he managed to block them with tremendous strength. On top of all the frustration, he didn't even flinch when he did get hurt. The feminine looking boy didn't speak, not one word. Sasuke and Naruto just hoped maybe for an instant second, the boy would let his guard down. But their hopes crashed as fast as they had come. Kakashi on the other hand was doing great; he was beating Zabuza to a pulp! …Ok, not really. He wasn't doing great; in fact, he might've been doing worse than his students. Zabuza was blindfolded, and Kakashi probably thought he would have been easier to deal with, but how wrong he was. Bruises were splattered over Kakashi, but he didn't show it. He had tried his Sharingan, but that somehow didn't seem to work.

Rai stood waiting until the whole drama was over, seemingly somewhat bored. Tazuna couldn't see quite well through the thick fog, but he assumed it wasn't pretty. Rai yawned, and finally spoke, stretching. "Tazuna-san, I think I'm going to check up on my team. Hopefully, they didn't die yet. I'll put up a barrier just in case." The girl whispered a short spell under her breath, and leapt up to find her very tortured teammates and sensei. Rai then placed another spell she had used before which turned her or anyone else she wished invisible. She was completely camouflaged, and she observed the two battles.

To her left, Kakashi was fighting Zabuza as hard as he could, but of course, Rai knew thatthat wouldn't work. To her right, she saw her teammates battling the all-powerful Haku. Rai nodded silently, and felt her "other side" growl in impatience. _Let me out…_The reluctant girl shook her head as before and waited.

She waited for the animalistic instinct for the right time.

* * *

The incredibly cruel scene of doom is in the next chapter. I'm so sorry this chapter is short. Another note, when Rai's "other side" said Rai-KUN, please know that -kun isn't only used for males. It can be used for both of the sexes. Till then, review. 


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

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Sasuke knew the defeat of this strange hunter-nin was nearly impossible. Even with Naruto's help, it didn't seem to make a difference. Haku stared wordlessly waiting for their next move. They were forced to use their chakra immensely, which was not quite wise. 'The Sharingan,' Sasuke thought to himself, 'I wonder when…' A panicking sensation clawed through his mind as one of Haku's dangerous assaults threateningly passed right by his left shoulder. Naruto tried his hardest to even lay a punch on him. The mysterious hunter-nin never took out his weapons, and continued with taijutsu alone. Sasuke soon blinked in realization. 'Is he really…'

Kakashi knew something was wrong. The Sharingan should have worked, but Zabuza's stance was a one Kakashi could not recognize. Also, at the battle with Zabuza before, he had been making comments and almost insults. Now, silence rested over him, causing the Jounin to be more suspicious. Lastly, the Demon of the Mist had covered his sight for some reason. Kakashi couldn't understand why, because the only person he saw blindfolding themselves was—

He blinked. And somehow, a small vague flashback cut through his mind._ I'll even show you a demonstration, Hatake-san_. _This is Naruto, and this is Sasuke. _The silver haired Jounin yet again blinked, because he was confused. 'She couldn't possibly—no, she can't be…' He felt the chill run down his spine, causing more sweat. He stared at his opponent again. Those bandaged eyes were impossible to understand; he tried to read to find the solution to this horrible mess. Kakashi just wanted to rip those damn bandages off for some terribly paranoid reason. He kept fighting, quite with great reluctance.

_Let this very memory burn in your minds. You have no choice. This is your fate._

The two boys felt they were finally tiring out the long haired boy, and felt a rush of triumph. With the help of teamwork, Haku was sure to be defeated. There was no stopping them, and that was for sure. With correct timing, and their every movement being matched so that they were practically one, doubled their account. And with those timing and movement, Naruto was able to crush Haku's mask. The pieces of the mask fell, and for the two of them, the falling of it seemed like slow motion. Only one thought flashed through both of their minds when the last of it cluttered to the cold ground. 'What the fuck?'

Kakashi had improved in beating Zabuza immensely over the minutes, hours, whatever it was. To him, it almost seemed like the killer had given up instead of tiring. He had his mind made up, and was going to rip off those bandages. The paranoia had gotten to him, and there was no going back. The large blade swung at the Jounin, but he had dodged it effortlessly. Then as quickly as he could, he threw a kunai at the bandages, below Zabuza's temple. The binding had then fallen, and what Kakashi saw in his face were no answers of any kind. How could a person read another's eyes if there were none?

Tazuna was still in a barrier, and he felt somewhat safe. He was still worried that the barrier would fade away in time thus causing him to be exposed. He squinted, trying his hardest to look for the so called "bodyguards." Blurry, vague silhouettes showed, but he didn't know whose it was.

Rai watched from closeness. She remained calm, and found that the two mist-nin were out in the open; the two pairs of sockets clearly visible (to her anyway). Suddenly, a tearing sensation clawed through her insides, to the point where she was about to choke. The lack of air made her eyes water, and soon faltered her control. She coughed up blood, and that's when the spell began disappearing. Rai was visible again, to everyone, but no one had noticed yet. She was on the floor kneeling and hunched over while clutching her throat. The tears had then fallen, and she slowly stood up. Her eyes were two deep pools of crimson tinted with something rather dark. A small trail of blood dripped down her bottom lip the color matching her current eyes, but she did nothing to wipe it off. Instead, her tongue reached the blood and licked it off.

Haku and Zabuza stared blankly while Sasuke and Naruto looked at their opponent feeling a new sense of terror. Who did this to him? Rather, why? Haku's eyes, as well as Zabuza's had been scooped out of their sockets, no doubt painfully. Now, all they had was the two deep holes in their head which was pitch black and drenched with blood. The three hadn't noticed Rai, or even the mist being lifted, possibly because of these unexpected events. The girl, who they had considered a friend, let out a dry chuckle. "Rai…" Naruto spoke up, but noticed the hoarse sound in his voice as he had not spoken for some time. "Is there something to laugh about?" The taller member in the team looked at them with deep red eyes, almost like the Sharingan but with a darker sense of violence.

"Silly child," her voice seemed as if two people were talking. "This one is called Nekomata." Silence had covered them like a blanket and all of their attention was on "Nekomata." It took some time to register in their brains that it wasn't Rai, but it got to them somehow. "What did you do to her?" Kakashi asked in a cold threatening voice. Then her lips twisted into a broad grin which wasn't friendly at all, but rather senile. Most of them hadn't noticed at first, but her physical features had changed a great deal. When she smirked, the rows of teeth were sharp, like fangs. Her neatly trimmed nails had turned into vicious long claws, while her body turned just a bit more muscular. "Oh, you don't need to know that. Just taking over for awhile, that's all," she said, sounding like it was nothing at all.

Without any kind of warning, she teleported right in front of Naruto and held him in the air by his neck. Naruto stared intensely into those blood filled eyes; pain and sadness was written within his cerulean eyes. Her hand clutched his throat tightly just right so that he could breathe a bit, but suffer at the same time. Kakashi immediately stepped at this act coldly telling the demon to let go. Sasuke watched in terror, and the two mist-nin stood ever so still. She ignored the Jounin, and kept her gaze at the blond. Nekomata was searching for something in Naruto eyes, and the boy could almost feel those very eyes roaming in his mind invading the last sanctuary. "Ah… So the great Yoko has fallen, rather sealed within this boy," she said, and it seemed as if she was speaking in codes. 'Sealed? What was she talking about?' Sasuke frantically thought. Of course, Kakashi knew exactly was she was saying.

"Yoko" referred to part of the name: Kyuubi no Yoko. This nine tailed fox had been sealed inside Naruto twelve years ago, but the newer generation of Shinobi didn't have to know that. He also had a feeling that Sasuke might know, because of the prodigy he was. And this name… Nekomata. Where did he hear this name before? The question was clearly left unanswered, so he put it aside for the time being and directed his attention to Nekomata, making sure she did no real damage to his students. The terrifying voice reached their ears once more. "Come out and play, Yoko!" she hissed in a strange delighted way. She lunged forward at Naruto who was obviously confused and frightened. Her claws looked sharper than before and looked more fearsome when it was about to claw his life out. He knew he had to run, to dodge the attack, but fear stood its ground and kept him rooted to the very spot. He saw his life flash by before his eyes when the claws were only a bit away. He readied himself for the painful slash…

But, none came.

All he felt was a splatter of blood slightly caressing his skin that was apparently not wounded. Then he saw what had happened. A body was in front of him, the person's breathing heavy and agonizing. It took him a second or so to recognize who it was. "Sasuke!" Naruto cried out, even if they were only inches apart. At first, he had expected Kakashi-sensei to be there, but this was completely out of the blue. Nekomata had torn Sasuke's right forearm for he was holding it up to defending himself and Naruto. The demon withdrew her sharp, fang-like nails from the Uchiha. Blood was flowing freely, but Sasuke didn't seem to care. Nekomata sneered and spoke in a taunting voice. "Protecting your friend? I understand your concern for your teammate, but truth is, you can't protect him forever," Then she disappeared, or so it seemed. And when she faintly vanished, her final words floated in the air. "Because you won't _be _forever." Sasuke waited until her next move, trying to stay calm, but he was scared out of his mind. Naruto was in an even worse state; he was shocked from fear. He didn't move, rather, he couldn't.

Kakashi stood firm and still had his Sharingan on. He handed a used bandage to Sasuke. "Not to gross you out, but it was from Zabuza. It'll do for now." Without hesitation, the boy wrapped his badly wounded arm with the bloody bandage as quickly as possible. The lack of blood made his head spin, causing the world around him to crash. The pain washed over him, but that wasn't the only thing. He tried his best to stand still to focus on the enemy, but it was nearly impossible. At the moment, he felt like collapsing to the ground and falling into a forever sleep. The bandage wasn't tied tightly enough to stop the flowing, so he was losing more blood each passing moment. His knees shook tremendously, and it soon gave in. At this sudden exhaustion, the wounded arm didn't seem like much. The ribbon-like bandage that was once somewhat white, was now soaked with crimson color to a point where it could be compared with black. His eyes were closing and he fought so hard against falling unconscious, but it couldn't be helped. Sooner or later, he slipped into a world of darkness.

Naruto heard a "thud" in front of him, and he snapped out of the state of fear. He saw Kakashi-sensei standing firm, but was Sasuke on the floor unconscious. His eyes widened in a heartbeat, and panic grew in every nerve. He quickly kneeled beside him and saw that the bandage wasn't doing its job. He searched for a cleaner one in his pouch, and luckily he had found it. He worked swiftly and undid the bandage. Not wanting to observe what he himself should have been scarred with instead of the one unconscious, he averted his eyes from the wound. 'The bandage should have its effect by now,' Naruto thought hopefully, 'He won't die.'

Gathering himself up, Naruto did what he could. "Kage no Buushin!" yelled the blond, and about twenty of him poofed, surrounding Nekomata. They once again saw her sneer, and by simply twisting her legs she spun letting out a large gust of wind, sending the Narutos flying. After that, they didn't know quite what to do. She was not Rai, but she was once her, and there was a very good chance that Rai would take over again. At least, that's what they hoped. So, they couldn't really hurt her fatally. All they could do for now is to fend off her attacks. The clones had failed, and it was Kakashi's turn to step up. "Sharingan Kakashi…" hissed the demon, whose smirk or sneer was nowhere to be found. "What are you to dear Rai-kun?" Kakashi seemed somewhat hesitant to answer such a simple question. He simply did not answer, and focused on defeating whatever she was.

"Teacher? Mentor?" she questioned, but didn't expect an answer. Her crimson eyes turned into slits, and her body fell into a perfect yet unknown stance. It was quite beautiful in one way or another. The two temporarily former teacher and student's abilities collided. The fighting wasn't matched at all; probably because their fighting style came from two different worlds. Kakashi's Sharingan seemed weird, or maybe even defected. Usually, when there was Ninjutsu, Genjutsu, or Taijutsu involved with the opponent, it would become transparent he could see right through it. But this was new. All he saw was a blackened figure of dark chakra, and the aura surrounding it.

Naruto felt he was somewhat safe because Kakashi-sensei was dealing with Rai… no, Nekomata. He glanced at his teammate, Sasuke, who was lying unconscious. His annoying, son of a bitch, arrogant teammate who Naruto had grown to… well, hate. They had hit off with a bad start, kissing each other like that. Naruto knew it wasn't his fault, it was Rai's! He almost smiled at the pleasant memory, but his lips were tugged back down. Rai. He remembered her smile. Ever so sincere and kind, unlike those of Konoha who glared at him throughout his entire life. He saw Nekomata, a goddamn demon who took over her mind. Rai was one of the first to accept him, along with Iruka-sensei and Kakashi-sensei. He wondered if Sasuke accepted him. Nah, how could that possibly be? He didn't seem to care about anybody but himself.

But still, he _was_ his teammate, so he could at least check the bastard's pulse. He had saved him after all. Naruto reached out for the other boy's arm, and turned it over so that the palm was facing upward. He held out two fingers for the pulse and placed it firmly, yet gentle enough so it didn't hurt on the wrist. He waited for the soft beats to pass through Sasuke's wrist and to radiate onto Naruto's two fingers. But it didn't. There were no beats within the wrist. Naruto checked all of the vital points, where the beating could be felt. Perhaps he just couldn't feel it. Of course, it was just that because he can't die now can he? No, it mustn't be true. Sasuke was unmoving, his body cold and still. His chest wasn't rising and falling slowly as it was supposed to. Naruto held back his tears, those very tears forming on the corner of his eyes. All of this couldn't possibly be happening. Rai was never really a demon, Haku and Zabuza's eyes were still there, and Sasuke wasn't dead… right? And these tears, which just fell like a rush couldn't be real either.

Sadness and confusion soon merged together, creating anger. Something growled inside him, like intense fury waiting to be let out. _He died for you. She killed him. Avenge his death, Naruto. She's not your friend. _With these words, Naruto let the dark energy to slowly slip out. Red chakra surrounded him viciously ripping up the eerie atmosphere into a violent one. As the strong energy traveled in his blood streams, his features changed as well. His mind was blurred with emotions, mostly of anger and had the urge to feel the very crunching of his enemy's bone along with dripping of the gore. The chakra radiated off of him, red hypnotizing everyone. He was hardly recognizable.

Nekomata smirked for god knows how many times so far, and withdrew from Kakashi in their little battle. "Apologies Hatake-san, but I have priorities." Her already animalistic form changed even more, and stood a few feet away from Naruto. She bared her fangs which had grown even longer and more frightening. Black colored chakra surrounded Nekomata, and her eyes were dark now, no longer recognized as red. Kakashi realized that Naruto's seal had loosened up and the chakra of the Kyuubi had glimmered through. Could it be possible that one of the Bijuu was sealed within Rai as well? He wouldn't know. She seemed to have more control over her power; at least the demon did. The vicious battle between the two demons began, blood splattering right from the beginning. Claws were frequently slashed through the skin, but it went by unnoticed.

Nekomata bit down on Yoko's neck; nearly crushing his jugular, blood running freely down, but despite the horrible gash, he punched her in the stomach. Even now, they were covered in blood the fluid dripping dangerously. Nekomata's mouth was gurgling with the crimson liquid, while a bloody mess was upon Yoko's neck. Both of the demons' eyes gleamed with pure violence and determination. The two were at it again, attempting to claw each other's skin off, growling in madness. Strange languages were used; both of their voices unrecognizable. Another vicious fight was claimed, and this time, Nekomata with a simple twist, broke his ankle. Yoko staggered to the ground, losing his balance while Nekomata quickly went for the kill. But Yoko was once again saved. Why? Because of a certain hunter-nin, by the name of Haku.

Haku was supposed to be dead, but somehow, in a weird unexplainable way, he was still alive. He held his arms outstretched, covering Yoko, and faintly whispered, "Don't…" His word was so faint; even Rai's sensitive ears were barely able to catch the phrase. And slowly, as time passed, Nekomata placed her arm back by her side. Bloody tears dripped down Haku's face; the socket filled with water as well. Nekomata then faded away back inside Rai, and the red eyes were gone, replaced with green. Her knees shook dangerously, and they soon gave in causing her to fall onto the cold ground. Rai was kneeling on the knees her eyes pouring out with tears. "I did it yet again… Again…"

Naruto was dazed. What happened? Why was Haku in front of him, and why did his ankle throb painfully every time he even thought of moving it? Rai was crying he perceived, and she seemed to have turned back to normal. And Sasuke was… he was… He was dead. And who killed him again? 'It was her! That evil goddamn demon,' he mused. He was once again subconsciously taken over and rushed at Rai, ignoring the fracture of his ankle. The strange thing was, he was only inches away from avenging his rival/friend's death, but he stopped. Rai didn't budge; she stood motionless on the ground. "I deserve to die, don't I?" she asked weakly, her voice hoarse, "I beg of you. Don't kill me just yet. I think I can help your friend." Naruto immediately dropped his weapon.

The world was out of focus. He could merely feel oxygen entering his body, not he himself breathing. A sharp pain glimmered in his right arm, sore and raw. A moment or two later, he was somewhat aware of his surroundings. The cold ground was settled on his back, and he heard two faint voices. At first it seemed they were only strange incomprehensible murmurs in the back of his head, but it began to get louder, until he vaguely understood the words. "…you think you can do it?" said a familiar male voice. Then another voice spoke up, a female this time. "I think so," then she paused, "Wait a sec, Naruto-san. I think I could hear him breathing!" Sasuke then had a sudden dizziness when he sat up which was obviously because of the loss of blood. He then slowly stood up. When he was on his two feet, Rai exclaimed, "I told you I would bring him back to life!"

Tazuna's barrier had already ebbed away, causing him to glance around for danger. But really, he was worried about the two short kids. They were in a serious battle, and had displayed quite a scene of blood. But things seemed to go back to normal, as the blond and the girl walked back toward their teammate to see if he was alright. Sasuke slowly (almost reluctantly) ascended from the ground where he's been laying for so long. Kakashi walked over to them, asked if they were alright, and then walked toward Tazuna.

Rai's eyes suddenly filled with water and hugged the exhausted Sasuke. "I'm so sorry I tried to kill you! I swear, it was an ACCIDENT!" she sobbed, clearly guilty. Then she muttered, most likely toward herself, "If he really died, this fanfiction would have nothing to live for!" Naruto, hearing this muttering of hers, asked, "Did you say something, Rai?" The girl blinked, and shook her innocently. Nothing, nothing at all, my victims! Sorry, evil author moment. Rai looked at Sasuke again. Did something change? She stared intently, and immediately gasped, "Sasuke! You have the Sharingan!"

So, everything was fine, the sun came up, and the angels sang, right? _Hallelujah!_

Yeah, right. There was another problem they had to deal with, which happened to be Gatou and his little assassin friends. Naruto noticed these must-be-killed villains, and exclaimed, "I will kill them all!" Rai looked up at him and smiled happily. "There's no need for that, Naruto-san. No need for bloodshed. You don't waste your precious skills with these pathetic fools." She glanced at the strange group of people. Then she added, "I'll take care of it." It was simple; all she had to do is to make them back up until the end of bridge. Of course, they all died.

So the drama was over, Sasuke wasn't dead, and Tazuna was safe. They had a simple burial for Zabuza and Haku; may they rest in peace. And soon, they were on their way to Konohagakure when Tazuna had completely built the bridge. Sasuke was almost back to normal, and Naruto's ankle seemed better, although he was still limping. Rai told him she could fix with one of those seriously dangerous spells that can turn out of be fatal. But it worked out anyways. Of course, this is not the end. Little did team 7 know that a certain man of a certain age (which should not be mentioned) had plans for them. Yes... Plans.

_Soon, little sister, you shall see what I have in store for you and your little friends. _

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	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

A/N: Wow! I had three reviews in the last chapter! And trust me, that's an improvement. Thank you wonderful reviewers! This chapter was inspired and is dedicated to you.

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"WHAT!" cried a voice so loud that it echoed through the village, "What do you mean you're leaving?" Rai held a small beige backpack in her hand and swung it over her right shoulder. The girl smiled and gently replied, "I told you. I need to visit my older brother. He's not exactly the best brother you could get, but…" Without finishing the sentence, she walked toward exit/entrance of the village. Sasuke and Naruto followed her, obviously still questioning for answers. "But why now? How about the missions and stuff?" She walked at an even pace, and thought about the question. "I'm pretty sure Hatake-san wouldn't mind. We're not Chuunin yet, so probably not much C-rank missions and D-rank missions are chores. Surely you can complete them yourselves?" 

"But, won't old man Hokage get mad? I mean, you _are_ just leaving without permission." Naruto explained, reasonably. Rai shrugged, still walking at that scary even pace. "Then, let the consequences befall me. My brother is the only family I have you know." Sasuke hearing this, thought about his own older brother. Instead of the appreciation of being siblings, he had a burning fire of hatred for his older brother. At least, that was his goal. Only if he was the same as Rai, his life would be so much easier. But fate had to fuck with him again, then again, and again. He inwardly sighed. "Wait…" Naruto murmured almost to himself, "Since when did YOU have an older brother?" Rai shrugged again. They were almost at the end of the village where ninjas entered and exited to or from missions.

"Well, I'm going to leave now, if you don't mind," Rai commented simply, as if this was nothing to her. "But we DO mind! You can't just leave like that!" Naruto cried out. Sasuke haven't said anything to this, and the blond had noticed. So then he started yelling at Sasuke. "Well? Aren't you going to say something, teme!" Sasuke spared him a glance and fixed his gaze upon Rai. So he was her friend, and friends were supposed to do something at a time like this. But, he wasn't a _normal_ friend, so there was his exception. "She can do what she wants." And with that, he walked away.

Naruto was terrified. If Rai left, that meant he'd have to deal with that bastard! That would be beyond what words can describe his horror. "Alright then. If you're going to leave I have to fight you!" Naruto was nearing his limits, and he had no other choice. Rai looked at him amusedly, giggling softly as a girl does. Naruto's female teammate, who was taller than both Sasuke and he himself, walked towards him. Then slightly bending down, she hugged him. Then drew back, turning to the gate and said, "Don't worry, Naruto-san. I'll be back as soon as I can." Then after he blinked, there was no trace of her.

Naruto, in dismay, trudged back to the bridge where team 7 meets everyday. Sasuke was obviously there, and he knew Kakashi-sensei wasn't going to be there for awhile. The two had a rather awkward silence, because without Rai, it seemed as though no conversations could be thought up. But eventually, the tension loosened up, and they shared a comfortable silence under a nearby shade staring at the brightly colored sky. A mist of cloud floated somewhere, but disappeared, and time went on. Kakashi then poofed, and he probably prepared his lame excuse for being late again. He sat on the rail of the bridge, and he endured himself for the scornful yelling which would belong to Naruto.

But, the boy was silent. He sat by a shade, along with Sasuke who sat across from the blond. Both of their heads were angled toward the sky, mesmerized by the cleanly painted blue. Although surprised by their calmness, he realized the other member of the team was missing. "Hey, guys?" he interrupted almost quietly; afraid to wake their serenity, "Where's Rai?" Naruto immediately froze. He couldn't tell Kakashi-sensei the truth! He'd tell the Hokage, the Hokage will send ANBU to track her down, and then anything could happen to his teammate! Well, he had to tell him something; the guy was already suspicious. "Er, well…" Naruto started. "…She had a business to take care of," finished the other boy. Naruto glanced at Sasuke who was facing his sensei and inwardly thanked him for it.

Kakashi smiled his eye curving smile, and said, "Well, then tell her later that there will be no missions today." And with that he was gone. Naruto let out a breath he didn't even know he was holding and Sasuke too just maybe, just MAYBE he did. Now what? All they could do without getting into an argument is not talking at all. Wait… Did that tell him something? That's it! All they had to do was not talk… for now. He was still sitting by the tree, and so was the other. Naruto grinned contently, and stared at the endless blue. Sasuke took note of this and he too, sat with his teammate, staring upon the sky. 'Maybe, this isn't so bad after all,' thought the blond.

* * *

Rai leapt through the forest wearing a rather bored face. She ignored the leaves and twigs scraping gently against her skin and grew closer to her destination. What exactly was her destination? Well, it was in the Country of Field as vaguely put. Not a lot of Shinobi had gone there, and nor were they trained there. Of course, there was a village which was quite well known which was located at the certain country. It was the Sound Village. But who knows if that was where she was going? Her older brother might not even be a ninja… Either way, it will be a long trip. 

The girl let out a sigh. At this rate, she won't be able to even get out of the Fire Country by sunset! The only way she'd be out of the country by then is to use her demon. _Don't worry, Naruto-san. I'll be back as soon as I can. _'Well, I did say that,' she thought positively. In a second, her eyes were tinted with red, and she ran five times faster than she was. The girl was out of the Fire Country before sunset. 'Well, now… Which way to the Country of Field?' She found no answers sadly, even from her demon. _Do you not remember where your brother lives?_ Rai hung her head in shame. 'Well, I do… Somewhere in the Country of Field.' There was a pause in their conversation, and then Nekomata replied. _Do you know which village?_

Now, the question stupefied her. Where was this village at? She did not know, except for that one time when he mentioned it. What was it called? Noiseville… Or something of the sort. Oh that's it! It was called the Sound Village. Ah yes… It all came back to her now, when she was just a little girl. Giggling at her own foolishness, she leapt even faster toward the Country of Field. Or rather, she followed the small pricks of directions in the pit of her stomach.

* * *

_A few days passed since the incident…_

* * *

"She's _missing!_" a certain lazy sensei questioned in shock. It was the third day or so since Rai had left for her trip, and by the third day, they were asked to be involved in missions. They had no other choice; obviously he was going to find out anyways. "But she swore she was coming back as soon as possible!" Naruto cried frantically, trying to stop his sensei from telling the Hokage. Sasuke was annoyed as he was with everything. Rai just _had_ to leave for a family reunion? I mean, she was a kunoichi now, so she won't be seeing her sibling for mission reasons; she should be used to that. "We have to tell the Hokage, Naruto. We have no other choice," explained the surprisingly calm Jounin. "But… But… She won't get hurt or anything! I mean, come on! She defeated those mist-nins in the other mission!

"And, she probably didn't go that far! Maybe like another village in the Fire Country!" Naruto then breathed; talking so much wasn't a good idea. Kakashi stared at his student and then curved his eye upward, signaling that he was smiling. "Well…" he began. Naruto stared intently at him, hope rising every second. "Shall I lead the way to Hokage-sama's office?" Naruto growled and groaned, trying to convince him otherwise throughout the whole trip. Sasuke seemed calm, but he was somewhat at turmoil on the inside. What if Rai's older brother was at a village which was forbidden to visit? That would be a real problem.

"Come now, Naruto. Rai is just a Genin," answered Kakashi, through Naruto's yells of convince. Sasuke remained quiet, but followed them to the ever so wonderful Hokage. They had soon reached his office, to Naruto's dismay, and told him. Concern was found on his face, but not panic. "Do you know where she is going?" That question silenced even Naruto immediately. How stupid could they be? Of course they had to ask her where she was going! SMART. The Hokage, observing that they did not have the questioned information, rubbed his temples in circles. Soon, they were dismissed, and the Hokage thanked them for telling him anyways.

* * *

"The Country of FIELD!" Rai cried in triumph. She walked into the first village, and looked around. People were going on with their daily lives, and they looked really content. She didn't really notice until later that they were staring at her. Rai, being very confused, asked a random woman a simple question. "This doesn't happen to be the Sound Village… right?" Then woman dropped the basket of vegetable she was carrying and ran; crying out strange things. Rai stared after her, and she looked down at the dropped basket. "Ooh, celery." 

Finally, she received useful information than some incomprehensible yelling. The man who she received the information from seemed a bit uncomfortable talking about the subject. She was about to be on her way, but he asked her quite with concern, "Where are you from? Why are you going to the Sound Village?" Rai smiled gently, and then answered almost immediately, "I'm from the Fire Country," she paused, "and I'm going to Sound to visit my older brother!" She spoke no more, and disappeared.

"Oops…" Rai whispered slightly after she stabbed a Sound Shinobi to its death, "I didn't mean to do that. Brother's going to be mad when he finds out…" She quickly walked away from the corpse, and scrambled toward the contorted building. She remembered every inch of the building, every crack, every door. She led herself toward the stairs, and she remembered that the third one always made her fall for no reason.

And as she started down the stairs, she stepped on the third one and instantly fell. She let out a groan, and she picked herself up, and continued down the stairs. She knew that after the large gates were prisoners. Rai had made friends with prisoners no matter how many times her brother told her not to. But they died pretty much a few days after they were friends, and she had to get used to that. Through the line of cells she remembered sixth cell which used to contain one of her friends. Hope grew a little in her heart and quickly walked toward the sixth cell. She saw that her friend was replaced by a short teenage boy whose face was deformed and infected. She turned away from the cell and walked toward the other hallway.

Merely minutes later, she was in front of his brother's door. She tapped the door quietly only because the last time she walked in without his permission, she was knocked unconscious. She waited for an answer to her soft tapping. "Come in." She could recognize the voice anywhere. She slowly opened the creaking door, and looked toward his desk.

In the middle of the room stood Orochimaru. Rai grinned happily and ran to her brother and hugged him tightly. "Well, hello Rai-kun. Nice to see you again," he answered in that spine-chilling voice after she let go of him. "I haven't seen you in ages, nii-san!" She told him a few things about her life in Konoha, which she didn't know was dangerous. Rai seemed happy throughout their whole conversation which involved only her because Orochimaru didn't say much. At the end when Rai finally stopped, Orochimaru spoke up. "I'll be coming for a visit, Rai-kun. During the Chuunin exams."

The girl's eyes brightened and smiled excitedly. "Wait until I tell Naruto and Sasuke! They'll be so happy!" She yelled cheerfully like a little child getting a Christmas present. Orochimaru grinned; his rows of fangs and he ran his fingers through the younger girl's hair. Rai's giggle ever so slightly echoed in the room. "Now, Rai-kun, let's keep that a secret," the girl grew visibly a bit downcast. But not sad; just a little calmed down. "But…" Orochimaru began again, catching her attention, "You can tell your two friends our secret." Rai grinned again, happy that she was allowed to introduce her brother to her teammates.

"I have to leave now, nii-san. I promised Naruto-san I'd be back as soon as possible." She waved good bye, then swiftly left the Sound building. A few Shinobi of Sound glanced at her curiously, but she kept moving at the quick pace. Rai ran as fast as possible toward her second home: Konohagakure.

* * *

Rai was half way there; happy that she'd be able to return without any kind of trouble. But it wasn't like that. No, because then it would be too boring. She didn't know the Sound Village was forbidden to visit! Where was the book, _Guide to a Leaf Village_ when you needed one? Okay, you're probably confused, so here's a little flashback. 

_Rai urged her tired body to run even a little further. And the girl finally slumped down with a sigh in a clearing of a forest. She rested herself against a tree, and stared at the sunset. Rai knew she had to get going a few minutes later, but took her resting time to stare. After a minute or so of contemplation she stood up and brushed herself off. Right at the moment when she was about to leave, a group of men (and women possibly) of five in gray uniforms along with animal like masks appeared. _

_Rai was confused, because she didn't know who they were. One of the members of this strange group spoke aloud. "Do you happen to be Rai of Konohagakure?" The voice was rather intimidating, but the girl stared indifferently. "Yeah, that's me. What do you want?" Without an answer, one of the members came behind her and cuffed her with heavy chains. "Is this a friendship bracelet? Because, I don't know you and it's kind of scary…" she questioned seriously not knowing the answer. "You are declared as a runaway to a forbidden village; an enemy of Konoha. By the command of the Hokage." _

"_Eh?" Rai answered slightly, and blinked. Sound was Konoha's enemy? And how is it that no one had told her all these months? "You are to be interrogated for answers when we arrive at the village." _

Yeah… That's about it. Rai sighed as she was in the middle of the five ANBU members as they had claimed they were later on. They were thinking she might run away, but why would she do that? She was going back to Konoha (at a very high speed mind you) anyways, but noooooooooo…. They had to make the trip slower. Her wrists were bruising slightly as they were walking, and her boredom was not going away. "Look," she spoke up after 3 hours of walking, "Can we go any faster? If we're going to get there, let's get there fast, hmm?" She had a tone of annoyance in her voice and it also sounded sort of threatening.

"How the hell did you find me anyways? Do you have a tracking device or something?" Rai was rather annoyed by these ANBU people. But, there was nothing she could do, so she followed them quietly, knowing they didn't quicken the speed any more.

* * *

Naruto walked the around the village for signs of Rai. The Hokage didn't know where she went, so ANBU might not have found her. He let out a sigh, but there was a possibility that Rai could have left clues to where she went. As he walked around, of course he still received glares from the elder village people, but two women who were in deep conversation didn't notice him and kept on talking. Deciding to eavesdrop,he stayed behind a nearby wall, and listened carefully. 

"…and they found her there. TheANBU teamjust chained her up and led her all the way back."

"Really? Wow… I wonder what's going to happen to her."

"I don't know, but I heard they might torture her or something. I hope they go easy on her, she's only about 14 or so."

"That young and a runaway? And to think, she went all the way to the Country of Field. What if she went to the Sound Village?"

"It could be a possibility. I mean, she _is_ friends with that nine-tailed demon…"

And that's all he needed to hear. The one they spoke of might be Rai, because it explained why she was taller than Sasuke and himself. But he partly didn't want it to be her because he had heard that they were going to torture her. Besides, why the hell would Rai go to Sound? That didn't make any sense. But, then she _was_ friends with the "nine-tailed demon." He didn't really mind the nine-tailed demon part, because he's lived with that for a long time now. He didn't know any other female friends so far in his life.

None of it made sense.

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A/N: I thought I could fit everything in one chapter, but I was wrong. Very wrong. Well, this update was faster than most as a lot of you know. Please review, because that makes me incredibly happy. Thank you for even reading, though! 


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

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A/N: I'M SO SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING IN A LONG TIME! This chapter SUCKS just to warn you, but I supposed it had to fit somewhere. Ok, just because it sucks, that doesn't mean you shouldn't read it. I want you to tell me how bad it is. XD 

Well, here it is, the seventh chapter. It's rather short, but please enjoy it. TRY to enjoy it.

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Rai sat in a wooden chair looking rather content. Her hands were chained back, staring at the people before her. She had suddenly lashed out at them before, causing a serious injury to one of the ANBU members. When she smiled like right now, her fangs were still there. Her pupils were slit into a thin line, her eyes slightly glowing with yellow. Rai's eye color changed occasionally at extreme point of emotion. Yellow probably meant she felt mischievous. 

She went through a lot of interrogations; asking why she was in that part of the land without permission. She had answered truthfully, not really the one to lie. When they asked who her older brother was, she also answered truthfully. But this placed her at a more suspicious position.

The Hokage himself, otherwise known as the Sandaime, had to deal with this. When they had asked if she was a spy for Orochimaru, her reply was, "Just because my brother is a manipulative bastard, that doesn't mean I support him. But you never know what he'll do to you if you have a brother like mine." She smirked after saying that, and then stared right at them like before. A few minutes of discussion was taken among the black ops and the Hokage after a period of interrogation while she snickered at something that was nothing.

She and the demon were in perfect harmony; both their personalities agreeing with each other like one. Her claws grew and her eyes were bright yellow; red threatening to take over. Rai could break free any time she wanted and she knew it very well. The interrogation continued, and during this time, she slowly began her escape. Her sharp claws cut through the steel chains skillfully, making no noise as this progressed. After another pause in the questioning, she slowly stood up. All in the room stared, including the Hokage. They were appalled as the chains clanked upon the ground. "Here's the deal," she began talking in a smooth tone, "You let me go to the upcoming Chuunin exams with my teammates and let me live my life here at Konoha. And if any damage is done by me, I'll pack up and run to Sound."

She said what she had to say, and she waited for an answer. The ANBU still tried to fight her, and at least three of them tried to chain her back again, but with her demon helping, it was no use. She nearly killed all three, but it wasn't fatal. This was a warning, and she still waited.

* * *

Naruto felt fidgety as he heard the woman's words again and again in his head. _I heard they were going to torture her. Friends with the nine-tailed demon. Runaway to the Sound Village._ He knew none of it was true and merely rumors, because it had to be. There was no way Rai would ever go to the Sound Village. And besides, how would _they_ know he had a friend? He sighed audibly. Perhaps a good idea would be to tell someone. Like Kakashi-sensei. But there was a chance he'd tell someone, and all of this could be a rumor. 

Well, he was told yesterday, which was the day after they had reported to the Hokage, that he was to meet at the bridge regularly. So instead of telling anyone, he ran toward the usual destination. Somehow, he was the first one there, which was unusual. Normally, he'd celebrate the fact that he beat the Uchiha and rub it in his face when he arrived. But since today wasn't a normal day, he was still feeling the shooting pain with the fact that Rai wasn't there. He sat against the bridge rail not joining in on the happiness of the bright sun. Naruto waited for the rest of the team, excluding Rai, to arrive.

As he patiently waited, a black cat came along. It ran toward him, and then sat on the bridge with him. It swished its two tails. Wait… _two_ tails? This seemed somewhat familiar. But he shrugged it off. Shyly, he reached out to the cat; caressing the small head. It purred gently, and closed its eyes. Somehow, this cat seemed so familiar that he was somewhat afraid. But despite that feeling, the boy finally smiled his fox-like grin; his white teeth clearly showing. Then, the cat backed off and before Naruto could come after it, a voice echoed through his head. 'You finally smiled, Naruto-san.' His face completely brightened, and he cried out one name. "Rai!"

The two tailed cat transformed into the girl he was worried about. How could he have worried so much? Here she was fine, not tortured, and grinning. Shortly after, Sasuke arrived. He acknowledged Rai as being here regularly, except later realizing that she was supposed to be with ANBU. "Don't worry about that. I explained everything to them." And so, they believed her like the idiotic fools they were. Muaha. Kakashi arrived after them (of course) and mumbled an excuse about a black cat. He welcomed Rai back in their team.

"The Chuunin exams will be taken place a week after today. I recommended all three of you Genin." Rai's eyes filled with joy and excitement, along with Naruto who burst with deeper feeling of happiness. And Sasuke… well, you know. He was quiet, feeling that it was obvious he was getting recommended. All three accepted, and was declared a mission-free day. Kakashi thought about the meeting they had for the Chuunin exams. Here we go a flashback.

"_Kakashi, you do realize your student is dangerous?" asked the Hokage at the meeting. Kakashi had just finished recommending his three students and was attacked with question right afterwards. He seemed rather surprised at the question, but had an idea of who the "student" was. "She may be when she's angered, but she's probably the only one who truly understands Naruto." With that, there were no further questions. _

_But, out of nowhere, Iruka stepped in. "I don't think they are ready for the exams just yet." This simple comment led to a rather tense conversation before former teacher and teacher of the same student. So to stop their foolishness, the Sandaime declared a preliminary exam for all nine rookies! Yay! Ahem. Yeah. Flashback's over now. STOP IT WITH THE ITALICS!_

Sorry, got carried away there. So, the three had to face a little test to see if they were "exceptional." While Rai was walking to… er… wherever she goes to, Naruto caught up with her. "Hey, Rai!" he cried out waving his arm to catch her attention. Rai smiled and waited for him to catch up. They created a simple conversation about the Chuunin exams, laughed a bit in between, and everything was a lot brighter. As they kept walking aimlessly, Rai suddenly spoke up this time with a glare. "Stupid _genjutsu_."

She walked right through Naruto for he was not real, and looked for the enemy. She didn't have to look far, though. He (or she… We never know) was in front of her in the quick scanning. "What's this bastard?" she asked simply. Her eyes widened after a swift moment before the mysterious man (or woman) could attack, and spoke again. "I'm sorry Iruka-sensei; I didn't mean to be rude." She quickly bowed in an apologetic way, and she ran away embarrassed by her choice of words. Iruka turned back to his normal self and felt shock. How the hell did she know it was him?

Iruka changed back to his disguise before anyone could see, jumped back towards where he started. He already tested the nine rookies, Rai was tested…. Sort of. The girl was rather strange, because she didn't need to knock his disguise out to see who he was. He finally reached his destination, on top of a roof where Kakashi also stood. Iruka dismissed his illusion, and faced Kakashi. He reported that they really _were_ ready for the Chuunin exams. The Jounin was about to leave, before Iruka stopped him. "But," he started, "That girl, Rai was a little strange. I didn't quite test her." Kakashi faced him a sign that he was listening. "I was about to, but somehow she knew that it was me, so she apologized and ran away."

* * *

Rai, Sasuke, and Naruto were supposed to go to the third floor, and turn in their application forms. But guess what? There were two little people in front of the door, so they couldn't get in! Oh no! What'll they do? Ok, exaggerating here, so it wasn't a big deal. Of course, there were other Genin lingering there trying to get in. Rai seemed confused. She led the way (what a surprise) and met new friends. "What are you guys doing here?" she asked. She scanned the floor and smirked. "In fact, what are _we_ doing here? This is only the second floor." The Genjutsu lifted, and the small tab indicating the floor level changed from "3" to "2." 

Everyone was taking their leave, but Rai paused for a short second. Naruto and Sasuke kept moving without knowing she was still there. Rai looked at the two preteens and then giggled. Shortly after, she caught up with the rest of the team. 'That's one stupid disguise they have on.'

They were still on their wonderful trip to the third floor to turn in their applications. They were so, oh so very close. But they were attacked by a boy about their age, with a hairdo that looked like an upside-down bowl, and REALLY bushy eyebrows. He wore a green jumpsuit with orange leg warmers. He looked like he stepped out of a whole different show. And his name? It was Rock Lee. "Uchiha Sasuke! I declare a dual!" Rai crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. "Oh, what now?" Sasuke was rather confused. When he talked of "dual" he immediately underestimated his skills. But, he was still alert on guard.

Naruto was insulted. Why was it that nobody wanted to know his name? Or even fight him? Why was it always about Sasuke? He crossed his arms like Rai, but his reason was because he was holding a grudge. Ah well. Onto the battle!

Rock Lee started with a steady skillful taijutsu and Sasuke couldn't keep up with the speed. He was obvious losing, and none of his teammates tried to stop the fight. "This is rather interesting, isn't it, Naruto-san?" Rai stared with bright eyes, sparing him a glance. He mumbled something grumpily, but the girl could care less. Rock Lee's taijutsu was incredibly amazing; even Rai had to admit herself. Sasuke was really below Rock Lee's level in taijutsu, although he could beat him if he tried. While Rai was watching the battle or "dual," something caught her eye.

She squinted, not really certain about what she had seen. She confirmed it as the dangerous C-rank jutsu, Kage Buyou otherwise known as, Shadow of the Dancing Leaf. Just when Sasuke was about to be kicked into the air (which marks the beginning of the jutsu), Rai jumped in unexpectedly.

Rock Lee disappeared for a second which caused Sasuke to be bewildered. Right then in that split second or a half, Rai pushed Sasuke out of the way. When Rock Lee was visible again, Rai without hesitation caught his foot in the midway kick. He stared in pure shock. This, if I must add, was greatly amusing. The girl smirked, and then swung him across the large area, causing him to be violently slammed onto the wall. Before he could stand up and attack again, a large turtle appears. And it talks.

The said turtle was disciplining Rock Lee, while the boy hung his head in shame. Then the turtle turned its head toward Rai; the girl looking horribly impatient. Noticing his glance, she rudely asked, "What?" The turtle was rather curious about this girl, but decided not to ask. And as if to make team 7 even more puzzled, an older replica of Lee appeared with a 'poof.' The three were about to have a confusion breakdown, but I suppose they were way beyond that level. Rai looked traumatized, and her eyes were wide. Immediately through insanity, she grabbed her teammates' wrists and ran toward the door. "MAKE THE BAD PEOPLE GO AWAY!" She screamed.

* * *

A/N: Ha ha... The ending is a little bit weird. I didn't have a single idea for this chapter, and neither the next. But please continue to review because it MAKES MY DAY! 


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

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A/N: I'M SO SORRY I DIDN"T UPDATE! THE ONLY REASON WHY, IS BECAUSE I THOUGHT I ALREADY POSTED THIS CHAPTER.

-sigh- Got that out of my system. Although this chapter is horribly written, I promise the next will be better. Well, that depends on your point of view. Please enjoy this one if you can.

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Sasuke, Naruto, and Rai had walked through the doors of the Chuunin exams. Kakashi gave them a little speech about how there really wasn't the free will to accept or decline. There were many participants, staring at them. The three looked seriously out of place because the rest of the participants looked dark and depressed. "Wow." Rai managed to say, "Everybody looks so… _grim._" Later on, more people came in. They were all of the nine Genin that were not looking so scary. Sasuke was technically tackled by Ino who haven't gotten over the obsession of him. "Hey, _Rai._ You should've dropped out. The Chuunin exams are way out of your league," she commented haughtily, but not exactly receiving the wanted reaction.

"Oh, Ino-chan," Rai started adding the _chan_ part, "I think you care about me too much. You know, I have to take risks once in a while." With that and a way-too-sweet smile, she faced the rest of the participants. She searched for her brother who said would be there. Finding no familiar face, she gave up on the idea. But she did return her attention to Sasuke. Just to make fun of him, of course.

Sasuke was stooped over because Ino was still clinging onto him. He had a foul expression on his face which was rather rare. Rai stooped over so they were on the same eye level. She laughed and snickered out, "So she _is_ your girlfriend, huh?" Sasuke glared at her and activated his Sharingan; ready to attack his teammate. Of course, he couldn't do that because believe it or not, but a fangirl's strength is incredibly massive. She walked toward Naruto thinking the Uchiha would kill her later for that crap.

The nine of them were talking about the Chuunin exams. Some people stared at them with annoyance for they were talking in a loud manner. Rai smiled slyly, her slanted eyes turning red; her pupils narrowed. She noticed the staring and she stared right back. "Looking at something?" she asked; her evil grin showing the rows of fangs. Most of those who were staring had turned away, causing her eyes and teeth to turn back to normal. Among the few who didn't turn away were the Genin from Sand village, along with Sound.

Gaara stared at the girl and something stirred within him. _That girl…_ Shukaku whispered although silenced right after. His eyes widened, making Temari and Kankuro worry. They didn't ask him what was wrong, but exchanged glances. Gaara frowned a little but didn't really say anything. 'She may be a worthy opponent.'

Kabuto was about to walk over to the small group of slightly bickering Genin, but the feeling of being watched stopped him. Rai glared at him with piercing dark green eyes which were no longer the brilliant emerald it usually is. Kabuto's eyes narrowed slightly in contemplation. She was Orochimaru's little sister, right? He knew what kind of power she holds. And her warning was pretty damn clear:

_Don't take another step forward._

He was rather intimidated by her, but he was also following orders. He was caught up in the two facts, so he didn't know what to do. So decided to back off for the time being and approach them later. "Who was that guy?" asked the blonde girl, who was now on the ground to Sasuke's relief, "He was looking over here." Ino glanced around at the people surrounding her. Shikamaru just shrugged, Chouji was eating a bag of chips that he took out of nowhere, and Rai was staring into space. "Probably no one special," she replied, not really caring about it.

Rai was pretty much lost in her own thoughts.

If my brother sent Kabuto here, then what could it mean?

_Doesn't your brother always send him to the Chuunin exams?_

…I don't know. And he was trying to approach us. I mean, what was he thinking?

_Here he comes. Well, too late to chase him away. He's already engaged a conversation with that Sasuke kid. _

"Shit," Rai cursed softly as she was abruptly jerked out of her thoughts. She turned around to face him talking to Sasuke. She walked over to where they were and she heard him say something. "Rock Lee," he said. Kabuto then transferred chakra into one of the cards from his deck. A picture of the mentioned boy showed up on the card, and the rest of the information about him. He excelled in taijutsu, but the rest he didn't do so well. This was his first time taking the Chuunin exams. Sasuke seemed to be taking in the information. Then he muttered another name that was rather unexpected. "Rai."

"_What?_" she cried, and stared helplessly as his request was being processed. Kabuto glanced at the girl and noticed her backing away from the small circle of Genin. All of the sudden when in the middle of it, he felt a slight waver in his chakra. 'YOU BETTER NOT DO IT!' she screamed in his mind. Noting the rather serious (and loud) comment toward his actions, he obeyed. "I don't seem to have that person in the deck," he lied very smoothly, everyone watching obviously buying it. He started explaining about the participants from different villages. Everyone was listening, except maybe Shikamaru, Shino, and Rai.

The Sound Village was noted as recently created, and somehow, this was an insult to them. A slight shift in the atmosphere, and it became pretty clear; something bad was going to happen. Then again, the thing was, Kabuto wasn't the target. Rai felt uneasy and she stood looking around the room. Did they have a dress code here? Is that why they were still staring at them? She groaned. She didn't want to wait any longer. Rai desperately searched for the teacher beginning the exams. He was nowhere to be found, she did notice something. A very vague blur past in the room, so vague, that she let it off as her imagination. That was a bad choice.

Maybe a few seconds passed, then probably the same blur, slashed in front of her. She clasped her ears tightly and shut her eyes, because she had already known this move. Even if she had dodged it, the physical contact wouldn't have been necessary. This move was all about sound; hence their village name. If the sound waves had reached her ears, there would have been a problem. She gritted her teeth and pried open one eye. Her eyes seemed to match the shade of black and hues of red could be seen in between. It was like the reversed Sharingan. Then she opened her other eye, and let go of the tightly clasped hands from her ears. "Rai! Are you okay?" Naruto called out from the awkward silence.

"I'm fine," she said quietly not caring whether he heard or not. She stared at them and blinked. Her tense facial expression relaxed and just plainly looked at them. "Don't I know you from…"

"Alright, you Sound-nin get away from them," interrupted a deeper voice which did not belong to anyone previously in the room. The examiner had entered, and the commotion (which went unnoticed by him) had vanished. "No one is to fight during the exams unless given permission, understood?" There was silence but he didn't expect an answer.

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A/N: I'm skipping the first part of the exam. Nothing to write about it, really. So I have to skip it. This next part goes straight into the second part of the exam. Thank you for your cooperation.

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"Ha ha! This is great!" called out Rai from the total excitement of the second part. They were currently at a clearing waiting for Naruto to come back from his "bathroom" business. They had the Earth scroll, so it was their job to find the team that had the Heaven scroll. "When is Naruto-san coming back? We have to get that scroll!" Rai cried to no one in particular. Sasuke stood silent as ever, and waited for Naruto. Something rustled in the nearby bushes and both of them in instinct immediately took a stance.

Fortunately it was Naruto, and they relaxed a bit. He laughed and said, "You guys are way too tense," then he paused, "What scroll do we have again?" Rai shrugged, and Sasuke pretty much ignored him. Moments passed, and another. Then it became minutes, and Naruto became impatient. "Come on! Tell me! I forgot!" he yelled frantically. Rai smiled but didn't say anything, while Sasuke on the other hand just didn't say anything. Naruto frowned. What was wrong with them? Why wouldn't they tell him? "Why can't you guys just—"

"You're not very good at this, are you?" Rai questioned with a smirk. She exchanged glances with her other teammate and they both nodded. They advanced on the blond boy and made him admit his being of an imposter. Naruto turned into a shinobi from Rain whose hair was covered and wore a beige outfit. His name was Mubi, although the two didn't quite know that. Neither had they cared. "Uchiha-san! You take care of him. I'll look for Naruto!" Rai yelled running off. Sasuke quickly obeyed and performed some hand seals.

Rai was looking carefully when she spotted him. "Naruto-san!" she called out. He was tied complicatedly and she immediately released. He and Rai escaped rather easily and returned to where Sasuke was. Mubi had run off, and it seemed to be slightly safe for the meantime. That was an unnerving encounter.

They sat in a circle and started talking. "So, if there's any encounter like that we'd have to be able to see who's who," Sasuke said in a very serious manner. Rai blinked and Naruto pretended to think about something crucial. "Well," she said with minor uncertainty, "I could sort of see if people are fake or not. Call it a girl's intuition." Something growled from within her mind. _That's MY intuition!_ "Shut up," she murmured out loud without knowing. Sasuke stared at her with suspicion. But he found a flaw in her suggestion. "But what if someone's an imposter of _you_?" She laughed nervously and realized it wouldn't work.

"Fine, what I think we need is a password," he said with a slight sigh, "Listen, because I'll tell you only once. The question will be, 'How does one see a lie?'" Rai nodded with seriousness showing on her face while Naruto frantically looked around for something to write with. Sasuke continued. "The answer will be, 'One observes every movement the opponent makes. Then if the opponent answers with even the slightest hesitation, it is a false fact. One will recognize the truth if said to them and the truth will never lie.'" Rai frowned with concentration, while Naruto ranted about not being able to memorize it.

Then, as if on cue, a strong wind blew them all away (literally) and they were separated.

Naruto stood up and brushed himself off, while wondering where he was. He walked a few steps before calling out his teammates' names. "Sasuke! Rai!" His yell probably could be heard by other shinobi in the forest, but he didn't care for the time being. He had to find them!

Rai rubbed her head slightly while she stood up with a groan. She looked around finding nothing familiar. She heard rustling and scraping of branches, along with something… slithering? Rai blinked with suspicion and frowned. She listened carefully for the enemy or teammate that will appear. Then suddenly, a giant snake appeared before her. Rai backed away, but after realizing it wasn't a monster she ran to the reptile. Before it could eat her, she hugged the snake. The poor overgrown creature was so confused. "A snake! Yes! It's my late birthday gift, right?"

Sasuke observed his surroundings as to see how far away he was from his previous location. He slowly walked toward a tree, and tried to see if he could detect chakra. Sasuke heard footsteps approaching him, and he readied himself with a kunai. Then Naruto appeared before him. "State the password," he said not letting down the kunai. The blond scratched his head and his eyes turned into thin lines. He smiled nervously and said, "Er, Sasuke? I don't remember the password, I swear I'm Naruto!"

Sasuke relaxed a bit and lowered the kunai. Naruto's eyes widened considerably. "You believed me?" he asked with unbelieving eyes. Sasuke glanced at him and smirked. "I knew you wouldn't be able to memorize the password." Naruto didn't quite understand for a second, and then he started fuming. "Well, it's not my fault! You only said it once!" Sasuke decided to ignore him for the time being and looked around again. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, but something was missing. "Hey," Naruto started suddenly, "Where's Rai?"

They had heard something. Something that didn't sound human. Sasuke and Naruto were standing back to back searching with their eyes desperately; a kunai readied in front of them. It was there somewhere it just wasn't showing up. The strange noise grew louder, and the air became tense. Naruto's grip on the kunai tightened. A bead of sweat rolled down near Sasuke's forehead. The noise was even closer now and they couldn't be any tenser. The two were ready to attack, ready for any kind of assault and then—

"Hi!" called out a voice, "Sorry to keep you guys waiting!" The biggest snake they've ever seen appeared before them. Their eyes widened considerably and began to attack. "Relax," said the familiar voice, "It's with me. Or did you guys forget who I am?" They ceased to attack and looked up at where the voice was. It was Rai.

Sasuke was still not ready to let his guard down. "State the password," he said with dripping distrust. Rai blinked and seemed to think about it. She quickly stated the password, and they both relaxed slightly. She jumped down from the snake and the creature almost tried to eat Naruto. "NO!" Rai yelled at the snake, "My teammates are not food, understood?" The creature reluctantly let go of the poor blond. They walked toward a clearing, just to figure out what they should do. They sat down, and immediately started talking. "So, Sasuke, what should we do now?" asked Rai with enough concern on her face.

Naruto stared at Rai with suspicion. He then came to a conclusion in his mind and started attacking her. "Naruto! What are you doing?" yelled the girl in bizarre confusion. She dodged all of his attacks, and backed away. "So, you noticed something I didn't, huh?" Sasuke spoke up with amusement in his voice. "Yeah," said Naruto, "The real Rai would never call Sasuke by his first name!" Soon enough, the girl turned into someone they _definitely_ didn't know. A man with angular jaw lines with white, pale skin stood before them. His skin was so white; it almost seemed a bit blue. His yellow eyes pierced them both and he wore a wide smirk. The contrast of his pale skin and ebony hair seemed even creepier.

Where was Rai you ask? Our dear characters here, meaning Sasuke and Naruto, must not know until later on, so I'll tell _you._

"Damn it!" she yelled, stuck inside the snake. She just gave him a hug, that's all! But the thing had to go swallow her, now did it? She was squished between god knows where. She growled loudly more like an animal than anything else. 'I WILL get out of here!'

Well, there you have it. Please direct your attention back to the story.

"My name is Orochimaru, but enough about me," he said in the most smooth, yet thin voice. Sasuke glared at the strange man. Then he made hand seals using the Katon Housenka no Jutsu. The boy was sure that he got Orochimaru, and he almost walked away. But the man wasn't so easy to defeat. He appeared right behind Sasuke and it was completely uncalled for. "Interesting move…" he said with the same tone of voice, "But not good enough!" Orochimaru dodged all of Sasuke's taijutsu along with his ninjutsu. Though the battle involved two people, only Sasuke received the terrible cuts and bruises.

Naruto stared helplessly as Sasuke was attacked by this man. Orochimaru, was it? How was he supposed to help? He frowned, but he knew he had to do something. He couldn't stand watching Sasuke being battered up like that. It has always been Rai who saved them both, and it was their turn to defend themselves. Naruto's hands clenched tightly and finally looked for a weakness. Orochimaru probably forgot about Naruto for he was so caught up in the battle. He silently reached for a kunai, and ran toward the nearest tree. The blond jumped to the tree behind Orochimaru. Aiming carefully, he tried his best not to get caught. Then, the kunai was thrown.

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A/N: Uh... Review.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

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A/N: Another update! Well, I had already started on this one a bit ago, so yeah. It's rather short, but I hope it's okay.

Enjoy.

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Ino knew her teammates wouldn't help. They were no help. AT ALL. Shikamaru always said it was troublesome. That lazy bastard. Along with Chouji who unknown to the team, brought a bag of chips. Well, maybe they knew. But he shouldn't have gobbled it down the first day!

She sighed. Most of the time when her teammates were acting like this, Ino wondered what it would be like if she were in Sasuke's team. Why was it that she chased him so much? That boy was never really interested in her in any way. And Rai; why was Ino trying so hard to crush her? She wasn't a Sasuke fan. As far as Ino knew, she wasn't. But what if she was? If she was, she's done a hell of a good job of hiding it. But somehow, she sensed that she wasn't interested.

"What was that?" Shikamaru asked suddenly. Chouji looked up at him with questioning eyes. Ino was still trapped within her daydreams. "Come on! Ino! Chouji!" he yelled impatiently, "Get up!" The girl finally looked at him with almost no interest. Nevertheless, she stood up. Chouji too had stood up wondering why there weren't any more chips left. "I heard a scream," Shikamaru said his wide eyes filled with concern. Ino narrowed her eyes and stared at him. "Shikamaru," she said with a little tiredness, "We can't help other teammates."

The usually lazy boy glanced and her while returning his attention to the forest. "What if that was," he paused for a second preparing himself for her reaction, "Sasuke?" Ino stared with a frozen expression. Could he be right? If it was anyone else, she wouldn't go right? If it was Sasuke, then…

"It couldn't be possible," she said forcing a weak smile, "Sasuke-kun isn't the one to be getting into that kind of trouble." Although it worried her terribly, she tried to convince herself that he was just saying that to give her a scare. Shikamaru stared at her for a while, and then he started walking. "Where are you going?" she asked yelling a little. He glanced at her again. He didn't respond, but kept walking. Reluctantly, the two followed.

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"I NEED TO GET OUT OF HERE!" Rai yelled on the way to be digested. She couldn't move much anymore, but there weren't any signs of her the demon waking up. 'I'm not having such a good day,' she thought, her body becoming overwhelmingly exhausted. Rai's mind was hazy, and it was all becoming so vague.

Naruto's attacks were ignored and Sasuke's attempts were futile as well. The man seemed horribly powerful, and he easily defeated them every time in a calm, smug manner. "I thought you'd be more of a fight," said Orochimaru in that hauntingly eerie voice. Although all seemed lost and the world was ending, these two were far from giving up. Again and again, they tried; failing miserably.

Hours later, they were panting heavily scratches covering their body. Sasuke jumped, aiming for Orochimaru's vital points. He was violently thrown back by a powerful fist. Everything seemed so futile.

Rai slapped herself out of self-loathing. How could she have been so _stupid?_ She quickly closed her eyes tightly. If she had any strength left, she would have to use it on this. She dug deep within her mind to find the demon quite dormant. She summoned it with great force, dragging it to the surface of her being. Soon, her eyes snapped open. Rai's malice soon appeared in her eyes; red swirled around overflowing with bloodlust. The length of her nails grew; becoming claws. Same went for her rows of former teeth. The demon smirked, and her claws nicely cut through the seemingly soft scales.

The giant snake hissed in pain, wriggling around madly. Nekomata chuckled and smoothly slashed through the vulnerable coat of scales again. "Don't worry," she spoke slyly, "You'll be dead soon, anyway."

Orochimaru was disappointed. He was almost sure Sasuke would be more of a fight. But all he did was fall then unstably stand up, only to be pushed down again. Same went for his teammate, Naruto. His entertainment was about to come to an end when the enormous snake started hissing. Orochimaru didn't bother to glance, but that might've been a mistake.

Sasuke glared at the man in front of him. The sickeningly yellow eyes told that he was only toying with him. A smirk was plastered on Orochimaru's face and it didn't falter on bit. Maybe his face froze like that. Sasuke was worn out with intense bruises and cuts. He stood up again with a very natural smirk of his own, gaining an ounce of confidence.

Naruto attacked Orochimaru, but before he could even lay a punch on him, the blond was thrown harshly against a nearby tree. The opportunity came to Sasuke, but before he could do anything, a bloodcurdling hiss was heard from the snake.

A hand was visible near the neck of the snake, along with the other hand. The two arms were soon in view. Both were dripping with disgusting liquid-like substance and the head poked out. Sasuke and Naruto were overjoyed to find that Rai was alive and well, but that moment cost them some bruises. Orochimaru attacked again. The girl crawled out in a strangely terrifying manner.

Her red eyes seemed extra menacing today; the irises were rather tiny showing more white spaces while her lips had curled into a broad smirk. She ran toward Orochimaru. Within a second or two, she had tried to claw his skin off. The man made it just in time to block her. He backed off a bit, and it seemed as though he disappeared.

"Don't hide from me!" she yelled with little amusement in her voice. She looked around searching for him. He was nowhere in sight, but all in a random moment, a kunai was held to her neck. Although the kunai was in front of her, the attacker was behind Rai. Without thinking much, she walked right into the sharp object, thus cutting the skin of her throat. She grabbed the kunai threw it far away from his reach. Then quickly, she slashed at Orochimaru who dodged it with light effort.

The man headed for Sasuke. He was a bit far away from the battle, but not far away enough. Orochimaru bared his fangs, and it dug into Sasuke's shoulder. The boy screamed in pain, but shortly after, Rai knocked Orochimaru off of him. He received a few cuts from her, and she also had tried to bite his arm off.

This continued for hours because the man couldn't get away from Rai. She was viciously attacking him, snapping her jaws. But Orochimaru had plans of his own. Rai, after all, was his little sister. He'd have to use her weakness against her.

Orochimaru's eyes met Rai's and for a moment, nothing happened. Then a flashback shot through her mind.

_The Uchiha massacre…_

_The blood and the tears…_

Her eyes widened and a wave of guilt washed over her. Her demon withdrew and she slumped to the ground. Orochimaru approached with a triumphant look. Then, suddenly, a kunai was thrown at him. He barely dodged it, and he frowned. He had forgotten about the brat.

Naruto glared at him. Sasuke was on the floor, worn out and all with the cursed seal. Rai stood up and ran toward her older brother. But he didn't have anymore business here, so he ran off. The two made sure he was actually gone. After a quick scanning, they dropped to the ground.

"Who… Who was that guy…?" Naruto asked tiredly. He attempted to keep his eyes open. The world kept coming in and out of focus. Rai smiled at him. "He's no one special, he's just…" she began. Naruto really tried his hardest to keep his mind out of "lalaland," but he couldn't help it. He finally fell unconscious. "…My brother," she finished when he could no longer hear her.

She carried them both one by one to a collected area. Rai stared at Sasuke with a concerned look. 'The curse mark,' she thought, wondering if he would survive it, 'Just hang in there Uchiha-san.'

-----

"Wow, both Sasuke and Naruto are knocked out!" Ino whispered loudly. They got there just in time to see little bit of the battle. Rai seemed to look after them, resting herself a bit. "Rai is the only one who's still conscious," she thought out loud. Shikamaru seemed a bit surprised as well. Chouji didn't seem to care as much, but had a glimmer of interest anyways.

Rai didn't seem to notice them yet, maybe because she was exhausted. It was time to sleep, except for Rai. They didn't retrieve any scrolls, but it was okay. After all, they had four other days to work on that.

-----

A/N: Uh, the ending was weird, but I guess it wasn't terribly bad.

Please review!


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

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A/N: Delayed chapter, but this is something that you should pay attention to. It reveals a bit of Rai's secret (as mentioned to Mizuki in the first chapter), and most of you might have figured it out after reading this chapter. I guess you could tell me what you think her secret is.

-hintAREVIEWhint-

Oh, and Sasuke may be a LITTLE bit OOC in this.

Ahem. Enjoy the story!

-----

Rai watched her two teammates carefully. Naruto seemed to have fallen unconscious, although he could have just been sleeping. She waited patiently through the night, and watched for any signs of their discomfort. Of course, Sasuke was groaning many a times throughout the night, but it was because of the curse mark.

She was having some rest herself, for fighting her brother wasn't so easy. She closed her eyes just a bit, when she heard footsteps. Light, but audible footsteps. She still kept her eyes closed, just to hear their voices and find out if she recognized them. Suddenly, a strange vibration filled the quiet forest for a second, and pain shot through her ears. Rai winced and shut her eyes from the harm. Soon, her nerves fully registered the pain and she groaned.

"I think we got her," said Zaku confidently because she couldn't hear them for the time being. "We can't be too sure," said Dosu cautiously as he stared at her.

She slowly rose from where she was sitting, and took a stance in a shaky manner. Rai forced her eyes from bleeding into red. She lost balance and fell backward, only to stand up again. "So," said Kin, the female of the team, "This is the brat's bodyguard? How pathetic."

"All we came here for is the Uchiha," he paused glaring at her a little, "Wake him up." Not exactly comprehending what he had said, she fell again losing her balance. The sound nin's techniques were rather effective, and Rai's world was really out of focus. "W… What was that?" she asked, not to mock him, but because she didn't hear. But he didn't get the inward message.

Running out of patience, he slashed at her again. Quickly, Rai made many complicated hand signs and stood defensively. The vibration still harmed her ears but not as bad as before. She flashed a weak smile and slumped to the ground. Her legs gave in, and it seemed as though she was stuck there. They approached her and she couldn't move. Somewhere, throughout her body, the message to move seemed to be disconnected.

"What are you here for, exactly?" she repeated herself much like earlier. She wanted to know why they were here.

"We're here for Sasuke; it's our leader's orders," Kin said for them. Rai's sheepish smile widened and it turned most like a smirk. She chuckled a bit, either of amusement or irony. "You shouldn't wake him," the girl said when they neared the Uchiha. Dosu turned, still glaring at her. "The curse mark can do the most terrifying things if you haven't witnessed it yet.

"You really don't get what's going on, do you? I happen to be the sister of your so called 'leader,' and he's using Sasuke. He may become a vessel, but I don't know. If he survives the curse mark, Orochimaru will one day try to use him. He can be very persuasive. You should all know that because you joined as well," she finished, her eyes gleaming deviously.

They all seem to stare at the boy and back at the girl. They didn't know what to do. Instead of showing their hesitance, Zaku snapped at her. "What are you rambling about, stupid girl?" Her legs seemed to come out of its paralysis, and she stood up. The three gazed in shock, because she shouldn't have been moving. "Well, sorry for letting you down, but you can't just come and kill him. My brother's plans would be ruined."

Rai's aura changed drastically. First it was rather weak and tired, but now, she had this burst of dark energy. Her eyes were red, but not only that, but there were dark lines under it. It looked rather disturbing to look at her, and the broad smirk showed rows of terrifying teeth. The demon attacked the three without warning. Before they can use any of their signature Jutsu, she made sure that they were distracted.

Her pupils gradually turned white, and her irises turned black. The strange converted look was scary to say the least. 'Damn,' thought Zaku, 'She's too fast.'

-----

_Run, little brother._

Itachi?

_Hate me…_

How could I? You're my brother.

_Cling onto life._

I am, aren't I? Every second of it, I'm clinging on.

Nii-san?

Dead corpses were there on that same floor in which he used to live. A man stood before his dead mother and father.

_Itachi? Is that you?_

Red peeked through the darkness. He saw his younger self looking rather terrified and confused. Itachi stared with unreadable eyes. Was it an emotionless face plastered on, or was it the work of a demon?

_It wasn't him._

How could it be him? Those weren't his eyes. He had held the Sharingan, but it was never so brooding red. Yet it was so familiar.

_I never did kill them, Sasuke._

What are you talking about? I saw it with my own eyes.

_I wouldn't do such a thing._

Itachi's image wavered, and it turned into a shorter girl. Dark hair and the same red eyes could be seen. _What is this?_

The image switched back. Itachi stood there again, cold and unreadable.

_Kill me when you have the same eyes as I do._

I can't do that. Those aren't your eyes. I suppose I have to live and die as an avenger.

_I never did it. Surely you believe your own brother._

What are you telling me? You're using manipulative words again.

_They were all fools. They thought they had me figured out. Including you. But they aren't worth my time for killing. Don't you believe me?_

What the hell are you talking about? You don't make any sense…

-----

Sasuke's eyes snapped open. 'What are you talking about, Itachi?' he thought as he stood up. He was in a daze as of now, and everything seemed like the enemy. There were three strangers running around everywhere. His head hurt. He had to put an end to this.

Dosu, Kin, and Zaku were rather worn out. No matter how they dodged her attacks, she never seemed to tire. The fight was still ongoing until the Uchiha woke up. Patterns that looked like black flames ran over his skin. All four of them forgot about the battle, and stared at him.

Through Sasuke's eyes, they were all Itachi. The fact that there were more than one Itachi didn't occur to him. He was in some sort of a trance. He took them down, one by one, and none of them could match up to his brutal power. This didn't satisfy his need for killing him, ripping out the answers from his throat. Three of them were near death; he held Zaku in the air almost crushing his neck. And there was the fourth one. 'Yes,' he thought, 'Those were the eyes.'

He dropped Zaku from his deadly grip completely forgetting him. Sasuke approached Rai with the desire to kill her. She backed away from him, unable to fight. He was her teammate after all. 'Did he realize what had happened?' she asked herself receiving no answers. She felt herself being cornered with every step.

Rai tripped over a rock while stepping backwards and landed on the ground. She quickly crawled backward, while Sasuke neared her in the same pace. Sooner or later she ended up bumping into a tree. She could've escaped, but right now, she was in too much of a panic-mode to figure it out. Nekomata growled in anticipation.

Sasuke didn't see or hear the small person crawling behind him. He finally had the chance to kill Itachi and it was right in front of him. It was a hallucination of some sort, but he didn't know yet. The figure behind him crawled closer and closer. He slammed his hand around her fragile neck. He wanted to savor the moment of crushing this neck. To feel the bones disconnect in a sickening snap, he wanted to feel every moment. He wanted the screams and the very moment where he clings onto life for only moments until he takes his final breath.

All of that, and he wanted so much more. Maybe it was in the blood.

The grip around Rai's neck tightened it was getting hard for her to breathe. Her hands instinctively wrapped itself around his wrist. She gasped for breath and tried to bring oxygen to her lungs. The person crawling reached even closer to Sasuke. Then, a hand tugged on Sasuke's arm. The Uchiha's eyes widened in surprise and slowly turned his head toward him.

-----

A/N: This is my futile attempt at a cliffhanger. -sniffles-

Ah, well. Review!


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

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A/N: Muaha. No update for a long time. I apologize. I had school. And Tae Kwon Do. And Jazz class. And art class. And dance after school rehearsals. And homework. And a huge project. I could go on, you know. But I won't. I don't want to waste any time.

This chapter may have lots of mistakes, so please point them out because I probably don't see them anyways. Oh yeah. You should also read the last chapter. Just read the end so you can remember what happened. I highly suggest it. Well, enjoy.

* * *

"You shouldn't do that," Naruto paused and looked up at him with a broad grin, "Sasuke." Sasuke's senses seemed to have returned. The black flames retreated back into the shoulder where the curse mark was. His eyes snapped back to its regular shine. For a moment he had no idea where he was or who he was. Sasuke saw the girl struggling to live under his grip waving weakly. He immediately let go of her. 

Air rushed into her lungs greedily and she sat against the tree. Rai coughed a bit from the loss of oxygen, but she was fine. Her eyes were filled with forced tears and she quickly wiped it off. Sasuke seemed ashamed of himself, and he turned away. "Alright, you bastards! I have to finish the job now, don't I?" Naruto yelled as if nothing happened. Buushin appeared everywhere, and it surrounded the three Sound ninja.

Zaku smirked and quickly positioned his hands toward the clones. This was going to be a piece of cake. A burst of energy spread throughout the area and it destroyed the Buushin instantly. Naruto growled out loud in annoyance, and continued to attack.

Sasuke attempted to help by trying his Sharingan, but his curse seal acted up. Soon, he was on the floor, groaning loudly. The blond perked up in concern, and became distracted. Dosu quickly ran up toward Naruto and punched him square in the face. The boy stumbled backwards and almost fell. The Uchiha then stood up, holding the shoulder where the mark was planted.

While all that was going on, Kin took the opportunity to go after the girl. She slyly slinked unnoticed by her teammates. The Sound ninja stood looking over her in a strangely maniacal expression. Rai was still sitting down. Their eyes met, Kin quickly held a kunai to her throat. The Leaf ninja's breath hitched when she felt the cold metal against her neck. "You can kill me if you want," Rai began with a hoarse voice, "But that would upset Orochimaru, wouldn't it?"

Kin's odd expression twisted into a skeptical glare. She pressed the sharp tool further against her neck. It cut the skin just a little to bleed teasingly. "Orochimaru-sama doesn't care about anyone. Especially you," Kin then added, "We're merely his tools." Rai smiled a simple, innocent smile. "And I'm the main tool," said the girl who was still sitting down. Kin's grip on the kunai wavered but still held.

"I have two missions in my part, though. Two huge missions. One is already complete. But there is my last one," she said her smile growing wider as she observed Kin's bewildered appearance, "He told me to kill him; Orochimaru that is. It would be my last mission.

"Do you understand now? I still have a mission left to complete, and if you kill me now, my brother will suffer." Rai finished, watching the girl in front of her squirm with hesitance. The metal cut deeper into the sensitive flesh and the Leaf ninja hissed. Her eyes squinted with pain and still felt powerless. The two girls stayed like that for a few moments. Rai needed to devise a plan to get out of this. She finally made a decision.

"My dear," she started with a vacant, yet curious stare, "Do you see death in my eyes?" Her voice was still quite hoarse but Kin understood everything she had said. She girl who still had the kunai to Rai's throat reluctantly stared into her eyes. For a second, nothing was there. Then the next, Kin felt herself freezing up with pure terror. Rai's green eyes were filled with dreadful darkness as well as death vowing to take her away. The Sound kunoichi's grip on the cold metal tool held, but now Rai had the upper hand.

Carefully, the girl whose neck bled a bit from the earlier threats pried the frozen ninja's fingers off of the kunai. Kin couldn't help but stare; she was terrified of what she was going to do next. Rai stood up rather indifferently and stared right back. "It's time to sleep," she said with a deeper shade of voice, "There's nothing to worry about." She quickly snapped her fingers very loudly, and Kin dropped to the floor.

'Hypnosis,' she thought, 'Always works.'

Rai brushed off her shorts for a second and looked at the scene before her. Naruto was on the floor with a kunai in his throat and bleeding excessively. Dosu's foot was firmly planted on Sasuke's chest, and the Uchiha slowly turned his head. "Help me…" he managed to whisper out.

Zaku smirked and readied himself to run away along with Dosu. But he noticed something. Kin was gone.

Green eyes seemed to pierce right through Dosu, along with Zaku who stood in the background. This intimidated them both. Rai's gaze moved to Sasuke and Naruto.

"Good job," she said with a strange look of disgust plastered on her face, "But not good enough." In mere seconds, she sped toward Dosu and aimed for his neck. She crushed it to the ground, causing the boy to be pinned against the earth. Sasuke and Naruto turned into a puff of smoke and faded away. "Where are they?" she asked dangerously as if daring him to lie to her. Instead of answering, Dosu coughed and choked loudly.

Zaku seemed hesitant of answering, but he tried to appear arrogant and fearless. "They're dead, didn't you see?" Rai's gaze shifted to the other boy. Without another word, she began to make complicated hand seals. Zaku frowned and immediately brought sound out to play. Rai summoned all of her strength to resist this ear-crushing jutsu, but failed. She wobbled a bit involuntarily and then regained her balance. This time, she thought better and began the hand seals even quicker than before.

Soon enough, a barrier formed around Dosu while the girl stepped out of it tiredly. He attempted to do the same, but seemed to be immobile, like he was in a sphere. He also tried to attack her, but the sound didn't reach her. Zaku said nothing, but he did stand his guard. After all, this girl was dangerous and unpredictable

Both of them were exhausted, and this battle was to be over. This was the finale, the time to decide who'll win, the time to—

Rai fell unconscious.

(That's what happens if I drag on too much.)

Zaku stood there, wondering what he should do. There was nothing to do. He looked around for Kin, and waited until the barrier wore off.

…

It didn't.

* * *

A/N: HA HA! I made the ending really crappy. It needed a lot of humor. Because it's pretty much like, "OMG! WE'RE GOING TO ALL DIE!"

Yeah. Review.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

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A/N: Damn. I didn't update for a LONG time, huh? -hangs head- 

I apologize. Not that there are a lot of people to give apology to.

Well, here it is, 12th chapter. But seriously, this chapter's pretty much CRACK. So, read it at your own caution.

* * *

_An inaudible sigh brushed gently against her lips. _

_Rai hiked through the forest. What was the name of this forest? _

_She couldn't quite grip the memory as it just slipped away, transparent. But, she was positive no one was with her. She appeared messy. Her hair was untidy and tangled, blood caked all over. Lastly, her body was covered with bruises. _

_A sharp whisper cut through the forest, unlike the sunlight which rarely graced itself in the darkness. At first, the soft murmur seemed like a hallucination, something she imagined. She was proven wrong when the mutter turned hoarse and called out to her. She glanced around nervously while keeping herself on guard. _

_Rustling could be heard in the bushes and Rai concentrated on attacking whoever was going to come out of that area. Then, out of nowhere, a hand clasped tightly around her ankle. She yelped in paranoia and dared to glance behind her. A boy whose hair was dark (added with slight hues of blue) lied in such a position that his face couldn't be seen. A small puddle of blood could be seen around the enigmatic child. _

_Rai stared at the child with a sudden rush of terror. Not knowing whether to help the child or break free of his surprisingly tight grip, she thought carefully. Pitying on the boy, she asked him, "Do you need help?" She mouthed the words, but there were no sound. Somehow, it must've reached the boy's conscience. _

_He looked up without another word. Two blazing red eyes stared right through her. Three dots swirled around as if chasing one another. After a while, it all seemed like a blur. Without knowing, her mind was in a trance; leaving her to feel empty and be occupied with only his eyes. Another rustle in the bushes can be heard throughout the vacant area. _

_Rai was helpless and subdued by this gaze of his; it was terrifying and intensely inhuman. Then, as if on cue, another person slammed her to the ground. This time, it was a blond. His eyes were red with slit pupils and a demonic aura to go with it. There were three dark lines on either side of his cheeks. Intimidating claws shown dangerously and Rai stared at them longingly all the while fearful of it. _

_And if that wasn't enough, another figure stepped forward. But instead of attacking her, this man just stood there. His hair was black while his skin was unbelievably white. The great contrast made him look all the more terrifying. Sickening yellow eyes stared at her. The boy whose hair was dark glanced at the man. Standing up, he walked over to him. _

_The blond had stayed with her, and he no longer kept Rai pinned on the ground. His eyes had turned blue and his darker form seemed to be retreating. The very boy looked pleadingly at the other as if trying to convince him of something. The one across from him, behind the man, just shook his head in disapproval. Then the two began to fade away. _

_Then it was Rai and the mysterious boy that was left. He seemed distressed regardless of his bright hair color and refreshing blue eyes. "You did this!" he mouthed, though Rai could hear it as a loud ringing in her mind. She didn't understand what he meant, but the dark energy began to pulsate throughout his body. _

_Fangs could be seen outside his lips and the claws grew once more. His blue eyes darkened into a deep crimson, and his birthmarks on the cheeks deepened like scars that were always there. Rai stood up to flee from this boy (not a boy, but a demon). Unfortunately, his quick movements caught her before she was even out of reach. The girl was helpless against him, and she waited. Then, when all hope was gone and nothing can be helped, surge of energy burst into her. _

_Rai transformed just the same, while the other merely recognized her as another demon. _

_(A demon just like him.)_

_Just when the forces were about to clash, Rai's immense energy disappeared like it was never really there. _

_And with that, she was killed._

Rai woke up, breathing heavily. Sweat drenched her forehead with a throbbing headache. She was in the forest where her dream took place. It was dark, and she seemed to be alone. 'Where are they?' she thought with a worried look fixated on her face.

She tried to stand up, but evidently failed. Her legs gave in immediately, and Rai frowned in disappointment. She summoned more chakra from her demon and stood up fiercely. There was a red glow in her eyes, although not complete dissolved in the hue. She looked about her surroundings.

Then she darted into the woods.

-----

Naruto and Sasuke followed after the tall man. Where have they seen him before?

Ah, yes. It was from the very place where all of the Chuunin examinees were staying. It was the tall man with white hair and glasses. He was the one with all of the cards!

Their main mission was to find Rai, but this man didn't seem very generous toward her.

…What was his name?

"Hey," said Naruto with light caution, "What's your name again?"

The man glanced at them with notice. He then continued to face forward.

"My name is Yakushi Kabuto."

Silence fell in place again, separating them. The two members of team seven were worried; their friend could be lost somewhere.

They were very positive that she could take care of herself. After all, she was a demon

But on the other hand, she was fighting for a long time the other day. So she could be tired and helpless. Neither of them had a clue to what her condition might be.

The two were pretty much lost when they had woken up. They were fighting for a moment, then the next, they were waking from an unremembered sleep. Then they had realized Rai was gone, and so were the Sound-nin. Shortly after, Kabuto came to them with an outstretched hand. They didn't have a choice but to take it.

But now, they were somehow regretting this action. Rai was nowhere to be found, and Kabuto probably didn't know her. They also felt guilty because of the same reason.

A rustle in the bushes jerked them out of their thoughts. The three stood in a tight circle, waiting for a clear sign. Another shift in the forest alerted them. It was dead silent. They began to move again after a few minutes.

Then a flying kick landed a blow on Kabuto's head.

"DAMN IT, YOU PIECE OF SHIT! DIE!" yelled the temperamental girl who repeatedly kicked the older man. After a few thousand of those deadly kicks, she finally stood up straight. It was Rai.

The girl turned around looking behind her. She glared at her two teammates. Her expression changed to a smile and hugged them both. She clasped her hands together with "glee" and then punched them both straight in the face.

"WHY THE HELL DID YOU FOLLOW A STRANGER? DIDN'T YOUR MOTHER TELL YOU NOT TO FOLLOW STRANGERS?!"

The two stared with blankness.

Naruto looked at the ground. "I never knew my mother."

Sasuke hung his head as well. "Mother never loved me."

Rai blinked and then followed suit. "Me neither."

All three of them sighed, and moped. Kabuto stared at them with impatience.

"Done yet?"

Rai looked up first, and then got over the motherly facts.

"Right! We're off to the wizard!" she yelled. More stares were pressed against her, and she laughed nervously. "Ah… Nothing."

They didn't have _any_ scrolls, so they had to work hard to retrieve two.

Hours passed, and they finally discovered a team that held two scrolls. Rai yelled at them for being so indecent and scared them with Nekomata. Somewhere in the short distance, Kabuto was curled up on the ground, laughing.

They reached the tower by nightfall.

* * *

Itachi sat somewhere within the Akatsuki headquarters. A rumor went around saying that another tailed demon was found in the Village of Leaf. His Sharingan was blazing crimson, and he felt his blood boil. Was it the girl? She was a demon; she _had_ to be. 

He ran his finger through his hair. Itachi stared at the ground and his sandals. 'That girl,' he thought, 'what was her plan?'

* * *

A/N: Well, that last part is a clue to the story's unfold. I KNOW THE FUCKING CHAPTER SUCKED!

O.O

Oh well. Review. Flame me. I deserve it. T.T


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